161 Days After Attack, FBI Asks for Public's Help to Identify Suspects in NY Pro-Life Center Firebombing

The Federal Bureau of Investigation's office in Buffalo, NY is officially asking for the public's help in identifying the individuals responsible for the arson of the CompassCare Pregnancy Services Center located in Amherst. The request comes some five months after the pro-life clinic was firebombed by radical abortion activists. 

And the FBI has finally released an 18-second compilation of video from CompassCare's surveillance cameras of the attack that occurred on June 7, along with screenshots from the video that shows at least two suspects were involved. 

"At approximately 2:45 a.m., the Amherst Police Department received a 911 call regarding a fire at the CompassCare Center. Individual(s) had thrown Molotov cocktails at the Center. This started a fire that caused significant damage. One of the individuals spray-painted the words 'Jane was here' on the building, as well. The FBI believes the individuals drove a 2013-2016 red or orange Dodge Dart sedan. Suspect 1 in the FBI's Seeking Information poster is estimated to be approximately 5'11"," the bureau said in a press release. 

The federal law enforcement agency is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the persons responsible for the arson. If you have any information regarding this case or recognize the suspects, please call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). You may also contact your local FBI office or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

The pro-abortion terror wave kicked off across the country after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization in June. That ruling overturned the 1973 landmark Roe v. Wade decision that had legalized abortion nationwide for nearly 50 years. The ruling returned the authority over abortion to the states.

CBN News documented numerous acts of violence and vandalism against pro-life organizations and congregations over the summer.

"After over 150 attacks on pro-life organizations nationwide since the leak of the Dobbs case on May 2 overturning Roe v Wade, this is the only public action taken by the FBI for any of the victims," CompassCare said in a press release. 

The facility reopened to aid the public in August, less than two months after the attack. 

The FBI's request for help came less than a week after the midterm elections as the agency is embroiled in controversy over politicization, accused of deprioritizing investigations of violence against pro-life organizations. On Nov. 3, the House Judiciary Committee released a 1,050-page report, outlining extensive Department of Justice and FBI politicization --citing not just the record but testimony from FBI whistleblowers. 

In a statement, CompassCare CEO Joe Harden said, "Let's not be too hasty to sing the praises of the FBI. This may be nothing more than an attempt to appear evenhanded, bolstering their reputation ahead of more investigations by the House Judiciary Committee into the FBI's abdication of duty to investigate violence against pro-life organizations. If they are serious about finding the perpetrators, they will offer a $25K reward for each of the 150 pro-life organizations that have been attacked—3.75 million dollars."

Harden responded to a request for further comment in an emailed statement to CBN News Thursday. He blamed FBI leadership for the months-long delay in releasing his clinic's surveillance footage. 

“The long delay in the FBI releasing the footage is because the leadership of the FBI has deprioritized investigations into violence committed against pro-life organizations," he said in the statement. "Given that there have been over 160 attacks on pro-life organizations and people and no arrests, coupled with negative propaganda campaigns and big tech censorship, I think all FBI operations should be suspended or defunded until a thorough investigation into the politicization of the FBI can be completed. The thought of the abuse of FBI law enforcement power for the purposes of a political agenda should be disquieting to the soul of America."

“The FBI’s release of the footage comes after the midterms because pro-abortion politicians need this injustice to go away ahead of the presidential elections. This is the case because what a thorough investigation could find may scandalize the Democrat base and send pro-abortion, political bad actors, and law enforcement leaders to prison. Such an investigation is already being pursued by the House Judiciary Committee,” Harden's statement concluded. 

Meanwhile, the FBI said it continues to investigate attacks and threats to pro-life centers, abortion clinics, and judicial buildings across the country. 

In an email to CBN News Thursday, the FBI said, "The FBI continues to investigate a series of attacks and threats targeting pregnancy resource centers, faith-based organizations, and reproductive health clinics across the country, as well as to judicial buildings, including the U.S. Supreme Court."

"In general, FBI field offices conduct all logical investigative steps during the course of the investigation which can include offering a reward for information," the statement said. "In this case, FBI Buffalo is seeking the public’s help to identify the individuals responsible for the arson of the CompassCare Pregnancy Services Center and is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the persons responsible for the arson."

Appearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Thursday, FBI Director Christopher Wray said, "Now, we have quite a number of investigations as we speak into attacks or threats against pregnancy resource centers, faith-based organizations, and other pro-life organizations. And you might be interested to know that, since the Dobbs Act decision, probably in the neighborhood of 70 percent of our abortion-related violence cases or threats cases are cases of violence or threats against pro-life, so were the victims are pro-life organizations. And we're going after that through our joint terrorism task forces, through our criminal authorities, FACE Act, and things like that. We have about 20 field offices involved in this."

"And so, we take it very seriously," Wray said. "And again, I don't care whether you're motivated by pro-life views or pro-choice views, you don't get to use violence to express it."

Pro-life Center Had to Go to Court to Get Its Own Video Footage from Local Police

As CBN News reported in September, CompassCare sued its local police department claiming the department was withholding evidence of a crime committed against the clinic.

The organization filed a special proceeding in the Supreme Court of New York in Erie County to compel the Amherst Police Department to return the footage.

Weeks after the investigation, Harden and his attorneys made multiple requests to get the video back so they could move forward with their own investigation.

"CompassCare has a right to pursue justice against the criminals that attacked us. To do that requires we have all the evidence to prosecute. The Amherst Police are withholding evidence, barring CompassCare and its attorneys from taking appropriate legal action that justice may be done and the violence can stop," Harden said in a statement. 

"Our patience with the Amherst Police and FBI to make an arrest is at an end," he added.

The CompassCare medical office and pregnancy center describes itself as a "Christ-centered organization dedicated to erasing the need for abortion by transforming women's fear into confidence." 

The pro-abortion terrorist group Jane's Revenge admitted in a public memorandum that they were responsible for the more than $400,000 of damages done to the clinic. In addition, two firefighters were also injured in the incident. 

According to The National Review, the FBI did not conduct a forensic analysis of CompassCare's extensive video surveillance footage until July 13th, five weeks after the attack, the center reported. Amherst Police waited until an August 1 press conference, the day of Compass Care Buffalo's re-opening ceremony, to release a statement on the investigation, saying "there have already been multiple leads examined and we are continuing to follow up with those at this time."

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