A Mississippi man known for being a strong supporter of the state flag has been accused of bombing a Wal-Mart because the chain stopped selling the Confederate flag in its stores, the local police chief said Monday.
Marshall W. Leonard, 61, of Tupelo, Miss., will go before a judge today facing a count of placing an explosive charge, reported Fusion. Under Mississippi Code 97-37-25, he faces life in prison if convicted.
Tupelo Police Chief Bart Aguirre said a vehicle pulled up to an entrance of the Wal-Mart in North Gloster, Miss., around 1:30 a.m. CT Sunday.
"A white male got out, lit the package and threw it in the vestibule," said Aguirre. "There was an employee on break, and the suspect told him, 'You better run.'"
"The employee did run and was away from harm when the package went off. It wasn't a large explosion. It didn't cause a lot of damage to the store," he concluded, according to USA Today.
No one was injured during the attempted bombing, and the remnants of the homemade explosive device were sent to a crime lab. Bomb technicians later found that the package held enough explosive material to damage the store if it was assembled properly.
Wal-Mart is among the retailers that stopped selling merchandise bearing depictions of the Confederate battle flag following the June 17 killing of nine black worshippers at a church in Charleston, S.C., according to CBS News.
Leonard took exception to that and posted threats, which have since been deleted, on the Daily Journal Facebook page saying that retribution was imminent.
"Journal corporate, you are on final warning," he wrote Oct. 28. "You are part of the problem. As a result of this, y'all are going down, along with Walmart, WTVA, Reeds department store, and all the rest of the anti-American crooks. I'm not kidding. No messing around anymore!"
"He's a strong supporter of keeping that flag flying.... This is his way of bringing attention to that," said Aguirre.
