- John Birges
John Birges Sr. (1922-1996), was a Hungarian immigrant from
Clovis, California who was convicted of planting a 1,200 poundbomb onAugust 26 ,1980 in the then named Harvey's Resort Hotel atStateline, Nevada . Heavily in debt, he demanded $3,000,000. (Birges had lost at least $750,000 and possibly a million or more at Harveys).Hungarian born, Birges flew for the German
Luftwaffe duringWorld War II . He was captured and sentenced to 25 years of hard labor in a Russiangulag . Eight years into his sentence, he escaped by blowing it up. This bombing was a primary piece of evidence linking him to theLake Tahoe bombing.He built one of the largest bombs the
FBI had ever seen fromdynamite he had stolen in Fresno. He was convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison. He died of liver cancer in 1996 at the Southern Nevada Correctional Center.ee also
*
Harvey's Resort Hotel bombing References
* [http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2005/Aug-27-Sat-2005/news/27112015.html Las Vegas Review Journal]
* [http://www.gamblingmagazine.com/ManageArticle.asp?C=540&A=14974 Gambling Magazine]
* [http://www.tahoedailytribune.com/article/20050822/NEWS/108220016 Tahoe Daily Tribune]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
