LOS ANGELES (AP) – Federal authorities have apprehended a man who claims to have collaborated with the bomber at the Infertility clinic. In May, he stated that he traveled to California to provide the chemicals required for creating explosives, having experimented with them in the bomber’s garage several months before the incident.
Authorities informed reporters on Wednesday that the explosion devastated the Palm Springs Infertility Clinic and shattered windows in adjacent structures. They have classified the attack as terrorism, potentially marking it as the most significant bombing incident in Southern California’s history. Fortunately, the clinic remained closed, and the embryos within were unharmed.
The bomber, identified as Guy Edward Bartos of California, lost his life in the explosion on May 17. Federal agents arrested Daniel Park, 32, in Washington on Tuesday after he was extradited from Poland, having fled just four days following the bombing.
Park had spent years working with ammonium nitrate, a chemical that can be utilized for explosives, prior to dispatching it to Bartos, and he later visited him in Twentynine Palms, California. According to Akil Davis, assistant director at the FBI, Park stayed there for about two weeks earlier this year, where they engaged in bomb-making experiments in Bartos’ family garage.
Park, 32, was detained at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, according to his lawyer, Bill Essay. He appeared in federal court in Brooklyn on Wednesday and waived his right to a detention hearing in New York through his attorney.
AP Audio: Washington Man supplied chemicals used in California’s fertility clinic bombing, authorities say
At a press conference, US lawyer Bill Essay stated that Daniel Park and Guy Edward Bartos met on an online forum focused on the anti-Natalist movement. Courtesy: ABC7 Los Angeles.
Judge Cheryl Pollack ordered Park to remain in custody due to the serious risk he poses. He was sent to California, and federal defender Jeffrey Dahlberg has reserved the right to discuss potential causes for Park’s detention there. No dates for future proceedings have been established, according to prosecutors.
Chemical Cache
Investigators searched a residence in Kent, a suburb of Seattle, and uncovered numerous chemicals and handwritten notes relating to explosive equations, as per federal complaints. One was described as an “explosive recipe similar to the Oklahoma City bombing,” which resulted in 168 fatalities and remains one of the deadliest homemade attacks in U.S. history.
Authorities revealed that Park had shipped 180 pounds of ammonium nitrate to Bartos in January, along with an additional 90 pounds just days prior to the explosion. According to federal complaints, Park purchased ammonium nitrate online in various transactions between October 2022 and May 2025.
Just three days before Park’s visit in January, Bartos had inquired about explosives, explosive speeds, and mixtures of diesel and gasoline through an AI chat application, focusing on how to create the most powerful bomb.
Firefighters stand at the scene of the explosion in Palm Springs, California on Saturday, May 17, 2025 (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)
While searching Bartos’ family residence, authorities uncovered a “significant quantity” of explosives. Bartos’ relatives informed investigators that the two were “conducting an experiment” in the garage, and no concerns were raised by Bartos’ family to officials.
Analysis of the blast site suggested that ammonium nitrate might have been part of the explosive mixture, though it remains undetermined, the complaint indicates.
Shared Ideology
Park and Bartos, 25, connected through an online forum focused on anti-Natalism and shared the belief that procreation should be avoided, Davis noted.
Anti-Natalism is a niche ideology which opposes childbirth, positing that population growth should cease. Officials indicated that Bartos intentionally targeted reproductive health centers in America, specifically clinics that provide services designed to assist individuals with infertility, such as in vitro fertilization and fertility evaluations.
According to the complaints, Bartos took responsibility for the attacks through a website he created, where he included audio recordings.
“In essence, I oppose all living beings. IVF epitomizes the ideology of existence,” he purportedly stated in one of the recordings.
Investigators have not yet established whether Bartos aimed to end his life during the attack or the reasons behind his specific target choice.
Court documents reveal that Park appeared to be an active contributor to the anti-Natalist Reddit forum. He reportedly discussed enlisting others to join their cause in 2016, stating, “When people feel lost and despondent, death is always a choice.”
Individuals close to him informed federal agents that Park had expressed proponent views since high school and that more recently, he announced plans to “initiate a protest or in-person gathering” to connect with fellow anti-Natalists in and around Washington. There were no public responses to this post.
According to court records, their families told investigators that Park and Bartos had engaged in mutual visits spanning at least the previous year.
___
Tucker reported from Washington and New York, with contributions from San Francisco AP writers Olga R. Rodriguez and Philip Marcelo from New York.
Source: apnews.com