The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist attack that occurred on April 19, 1995 when a truck bomb exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The attack claimed 168 lives and injured over 680 others. It remains the deadliest instance of domestic terrorism in United States history.
Below are 55 riddles exploring various aspects of this tragic event, along with answers to help resolve each mystery. The riddles aim to encourage critical thinking and analysis around the motivations, consequences, and lessons from America’s largest domestic terror attack prior to 9/11.
Riddles on Bombers & Motivations
Riddle #1
Question: Who was convicted and executed for planning and carrying out the bombing?
Answer: Timothy McVeigh
Riddle #2
Question: What was the name of McVeigh’s accomplice who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison?
Answer: Terry Nichols
Riddle #3
Question: What racist, anti-government novel did McVeigh cite as inspiration for the terror plot?
Answer: The Turner Diaries
Riddle #4
Question: When did McVeigh and Nichols first meet and begin forming their militia-style alliance?
Answer: In 1988 during basic training for the U.S. Army
Riddle #5
Question: Why did McVeigh drive to Waco, Texas to witness the standoff between federal agents and the Branch Davidians in 1993?
Answer: He wanted to inspire his growing rage against the federal government
Riddles on Bombing Details & Execution
Riddle #6
Question: Out of what materials did McVeigh construct the 5,000-pound fertilizer and fuel oil bomb?
Answer: Commonly available agricultural fertilizer and diesel fuel
Riddle #7
Question: What was the name of the truck rental company whose large Ryder truck McVeigh used to deliver the explosive?
Answer: Elliot’s Body Shop
Riddle #8
Question: Where did McVeigh house and assemble the bomb materials in the days before the attack?
Answer: At a rented storage unit in Herington, Kansas
Riddle #9
Question: How much money did McVeigh spend on the bomb materials, truck rental, and other logistics?
Answer: Less than $5,000
Riddle #10
Question: On what floor of the Alfred P. Murrah building was the Ryder truck parked when it exploded?
Answer: Ground-level outdoor parking area
Riddles on Immediate Aftermath
Riddle #11
Question: How many buildings near the Murrah building were damaged or destroyed by the blast?
Answer: Over 300
Riddle #12
Question: What proportion of the victims were federal employees working in the building?
Answer: About 20%
Riddle #13
Question: How many children at the building’s daycare center were killed by the attack?
Answer: 15 young children
Riddle #14
Question: What familiar national landmark was created at the site to honor victims?
Answer: The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum
Riddle #15
Question: What group falsely claimed responsibility in the immediate aftermath before McVeigh was captured?
Answer: A Middle East terrorist group
Riddles on Investigation & Capture
Riddle #16
Question: What numbered highway was McVeigh driving on when he was first pulled over by a state trooper 80 minutes after the bombing?
Answer: Interstate 35
Riddle #17
Question: Why did the trooper first stop McVeigh?
Answer: His car was missing a license plate
Riddle #18
Question: How was McVeigh officially captured two days later?
Answer: Through a traffic stop after police received a description of his stolen getaway car
Riddle #19
Question: What had McVeigh been doing in the days between the bombing and his arrest?
Answer: Mostly wandering and gambling at casinos
Riddle #20
Question: How quickly after the bombing did the FBI identify McVeigh and Nichols as primary suspects?
Answer: 2 days
Riddles on Trial & Sentencing
Riddle #21
Question: How many counts of murder did McVeigh face in his 1997 federal trial?
Answer: 11 counts, 8 for federal agents and 3 for rescue workers
Riddle #22
Question: On how many charges was McVeigh convicted? What was his sentence?
Answer: All 11 murder charges; death penalty
Riddle #23
Question: What unusual request about his death sentence did McVeigh make to the judge?
Answer: He requested to receive the death penalty without possibility of appeal
Riddle #24
Question: Where and how was McVeigh executed for his crimes four years after sentencing?
Answer: Lethal injection at a federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana
Riddle #25
Question: How did co-conspirator Terry Nichols end up being sentenced?
Answer: To life in prison without possibility of parole
Riddles on Political & Historical Impact
Riddle #26
Question: What major anti-terrorism law passed after the Oklahoma City attack in response?
Answer: The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996
Riddle #27
Question: How did the public perception of terrorism in American shift after this attack?
Answer: People realized terrorism could originate domestically/internally
Riddle #28
Question: What profound emotional effect did the bombing have, given that it targeted children and innocents?
Answer: Caused elevated fear & vulnerability nationwide
Riddle #29
Question: How did security culture change for federal facilities after this attack?
Answer: Security budgets & visibility increased drastically
Riddle #30
Question: What term often used for 9/11 did the media first coin to describe the Oklahoma City attack?
Answer: The first usage of “homegrown” terrorism
Riddles on Theories & Speculation
Riddle #31
Question: Some theorists believe McVeigh intended to bomb which other federal building along with OKC?
Answer: The FBI Headquarters in Washington DC
Riddle #32
Question: Why do some question whether McVeigh acted alone or had other accomplices?
Answer: Eyewitness accounts detailed multiple perpetrators
Riddle #33
Question: What is the name of the theory that the terror attack was an inside job?
Answer: The ATF conspiracy theory
Riddle #34
Question: What group did McVeigh deny affiliation with despite some ideological overlap?
Answer: Right-wing Christian extremists
Riddle #35
Question: Some argue McVeigh picked the Murrah building for another reason beyond anti-government anger – what competing motive?
Answer: Revenge against the ATF for the Waco standoff
Riddles on Memorial & Education
Riddle #36
Question: When was the Oklahoma City National Memorial dedicated?
Answer: April 19, 2000, 5 years after the attack
Riddle #37
Question: What time is frozen-in-time and commemorated by the symbolic Gates of Time at the memorial?
Answer: 9:02 am when the explosion went off
Riddle #38
Question: How many chairs represent each of the lives lost in the memorial’s symbolic Field of Empty Chairs?
Answer: 168 illuminated chairs
Riddle #39
Question: What survivor whose image became iconic addressed the nation at the 5-year memorial dedication?
Answer: Firefighter Chris Fields holding dying baby Baylee Almon
Riddle #40
Question: How many museum visitors has the site education center hosted to date since opening in 2000?
Answer: Over 4 million visitors
More Riddles on Motives & Complicity
Riddle #41
Question: Some argue McVeigh shifted motives from revolutionary ideals to personal revenge – what evidence supports this?
Answer: His increasing isolation and violent obsession
Riddle #42
Question: What branch of service did McVeigh serve in for the Army for 3 years?
Answer: Infantry division
Riddle #43
Question: Those closest to McVeigh said what personality traits shifted before the terror plot?
Answer: Growing aggression, secrecy, isolation
Riddle #44
Question: Why did McVeigh’s time in Army not predict his later radicalization?
Answer: He was commended marksman who withdrew near end
Riddle #45
Question: What early life factors partially explain McVeigh’s extreme anti-government views later on?
Answer: Bullying and family stress as a youth
Riddles on Lasting Impact
Riddle #46
Question: How has studying mental trauma from the OKC attack informed treatment of what other mass violent events?
Answer: School shootings and 9/11
Riddle #47
Question: What legacy subsystem to report tips was created within the FBI post-OKC bombing?
Answer: AMBER Alert system
Riddle #48
Question: How have lessons from OKC influenced architecture decisions for new federal buildings?
Answer: Increased setback distances and blast-resistant design
Riddle #49
Question: What agency under Homeland Security was influenced by OKC to help prevent domestic attacks?
Answer: Office of Bombing Prevention
Riddle #50
Question: How have OKC victim compensation funds informed support for victims of what other attacks?
Answer: 9/11 and Boston Marathon victims
Riddles on Lingering Questions
Riddle #51
Question: Who according to theorists was an ATF informant that warned them before the attack they ignored?
Answer: Carol Howe
Riddle #52
Question: What newspaper published Disaster Compensation Transparency documents about OKC some feel were incriminating?
Answer: The Oklahoman
Riddle #53
Question: Who did McVeigh suggest was the real mastermind, according to a note before his death?
Answer: The government itself
Riddle #54
Question: What group sued the government for allegedly having prior warning signs about McVeigh they ignored?
Answer: Over 300 victim families
Riddle #55
Question: What government behavior does lingering doubt about OKC attack details potentially undermine?
Answer: Public trust in institutions
Conclusion
The Oklahoma City bombing stands as a sobering reminder of the immense devastation domestic terrorism can inflict. The riddles explored attempt to critically examine the attack from multiple standpoints – including the radicalization of bombers, the execution of the plot itself, the investigation and trial, the political fallout, lingering questions, and the memorialization process to educate future generations.
As the United States continues to confront the threat of extremism and mass violence, may the lessons from this tragic terror event guide efforts to prevent such ideologically-driven hatred from claiming innocent life. And may American society reject violence against fellow citizens, instead embracing open and thoughtful discourse, inclusive community, and commitment to nonviolence.
