2005 University of Oklahoma Bombing

The 2005 University of Oklahoma bombing occurred on October 1, 2005 at approximately 7:30 p.m. CDT, when a bomb went off near the George Lynn Cross Hall on Van Vleet Oval on the University of Oklahoma (OU) main campus. The blast took place less than 200 yards west of Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, where 84,501 spectators were attending a football game. The bomber, OU student Joel "Joe" Henry Hinrichs III, was killed in the explosion; no one else was killed.

After the incident, speculation began immediately about Hinrichs' motivation and the number of accomplices, if any. An off-duty police officer noted a discussion Hinrichs had with a local feed store owner about ammonium nitrate and had begun an investigation, one heightened by innuendo regarding the Pakistani heritage of the bomber's roommate. Terrorism-related speculation further erupted when the explosive agent was found to be TATP, the compound used in the July 2005 London bombings, as well as in an infamous attempt to destroy a transatlantic flight by igniting a shoe and by Hamas in clandestine devices intended for detonation by suicide bombers. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and local authorities concluded in 2006 that Hinrichs was alone and had no assistance from other groups, but could not prove or disprove allegations that Hinrichs intended to enter the packed stadium and kill football fans along with himself.