Yung W. Tang
New York Man Arrested In Bomb Plot
June 13, 2008
Yung W. Tang, a citizen of China who lives in Greenwood Lake, New York has been tied to a variety of wild incidents, that includes a bombing of a tenant who was behind in his rent, having bomb components in a van parked in a preschool parking lot during a period of time he was involved in a divorce, and accompanied by a claim from his estranged wife that he threatened to throw her overboard while the pair was on a family cruise.
The attorney for Tang, denies the charges, but the evidence strongly suggests that Tang was about to kidnap his wife and then blow up the van they were in.
Tang was found sleeping in the van, parked in a preschool parking lot in Wallingford, Connecticut. Inside the van police found a black duffel bag containing what appeared to be the components of a pipe bomb; another bag containing a fake mustache, makeup, and gum remover; a digital timer and a bag containing wires and caps, authorities said. This was three days after the bombing of the tenant.
Tang also had two improvised explosive devices, two radio-controlled initiators that could be used to remotely activate a bomb, two firearm silencers, a pair of clear plastic gloves, a knit hat that can cover an entire face and what appeared to be gun powder as well as other suspicious items.
Police say the contents of the van would have caused a huge explosion that would have devasted the van and everything in it, as well as buildings in the surrounding area.
Tang said he was sleeping in the parking lot because he became tired driving from Boston to New York. That parking lot just happened to be close to where his wife lived.
Mrs. Tang alleges that her husband assaulted her and threatened to throw her off a cruise ship.
Court papers allege, "Stated simply, the status of the defendant's relationship with his wife, including the divorce, the claims to the marital property and the defendant's being restrained from proximity to his wife and children, all provide a motive for the defendant to have loaded a van with a highly dangerous and destructive mix of prohibited explosives, and parked it in close proximity to where his wife lives _ and where she could most easily be found and abducted inside the van; and the prior, alleged threats and assaults show that the defendant was quite capable of seeking to inflict such harm upon his wife."
Mr. Tang has pleaded not guilty to the Connecticut charges and has not been charged with the bomb components found in the van. Prosecutors say he may not be charged with the current incriminating collection of explosives and crime concealing apparatus if there is a plea to the Connecticut case.
The FBI web site says:
"Kevin J. O'Connor, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced a federal grand jury returned a five-count Indictment today, charging YUNG W. TANG, 38, a citizen of China residing in Greenwood Lake, New York, with four counts of possession of a firearm, specifically, two Improvised Explosive Devices and two silencers, not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Records, and one count of transporting explosive materials by a non-licensee.
According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in earlier proceedings in this matter, in the early morning hours of January 29, Wallingford Police encountered TANG sleeping in a car located in a parking lot on Miles Drive in Wallingford. TANG indicated that he was driving from Boston to New York and had pulled off the highway to sleep. TANG was arrested after police learned that TANG's driver's license was suspended, the marker plates on the car belonged to another vehicle, and TANG could not produce valid registration or insurance information for the vehicle. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed a black duffle bag containing what appeared to be the components of a pipe bomb; another bag containing a fake mustache, make-up, and gum remover; a digital timer and a bag containing wires and caps. Wallingford Police then contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Connecticut State Police bomb squad for further investigative assistance. The investigation revealed that TANG allegedly possessed two Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), two radio-controlled initiators that could be used to remotely activate an IED, and two firearm silencers.
According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives, TANG has no firearms or explosive devices registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Records.
TANG has been detained since his initial appearance on January 30, 2008, before United States Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven, following his arrest on a federal complaint. An arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday, February 12, 2008, at 2:00 p.m. before Magistrate Judge Margolis.
Each of the charges against TANG carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
U.S. Attorney O'Connor stated that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial at which it will be the Government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt."
