The 1993 World Trade Center Bombing

The World Trade Center became established as a prime target for terrorist attacks by the 1993 garage bombing, which a 1500-pound urea-nitrate bomb, packed in a van carved out a multi-story crater in the grarage, and killed six people while injuring over one thousand subjected to toxic smoke.

As in the 9/11/01 attack, the FBI was extremely prompt in identifying the suspect. They arrested Mohammed A. Salameh and his friend Nidal Ayyad days after the attack, based on a fragment of metal at the scene traced back to a Ford Econoline rental van.

The behavior of the FBI's prime suspect Salameh was not that of the typical bomber. He reported the van stolen the day before the bombing to both the police and the rental agency, and went to the rental agency the day of the attack to attempt to retrieve his $400 deposit.