CONFIDENTIAL & PRIVILEGED ATTORNEY WORK PRODUCT
	M E M O R A N D U M


	


TO:       Stephen Jones, Rob Nigh, Richard Burr, Mandy Welch

FROM: J. Neil Hartley

DATE:   July 29,1996

RE:         Interview with Vincent Petruskie,  July 25, 1996
_________________________________________________________________

Location:  

Home address:   8813 Barnett,  Manassas, VA
Ph: (703) 368-8341


Results:

On the date listed above, I met with Mr. Petruskie at his home.  He explained the he had first met Andy Strassmire when a group of approximately 4-5 Germans traveled to the US to attend a Civil War reenactment.  Petuski’s son had previously attended a reenactment in Germany along with an instructor from Texas A&M college.  The instructor later contacted Petruskie asking if he would assist the German group when they came to the US.  Petruskie agreed and allowed them to stay at his home where they stayed for several days.   Later, Andy’s mother in Germany called Petruskie asking if he would help Andy out and “give him some direction” if he returned to the US. Petruskie agreed, and Andy stayed with him  briefly during this subsequent trip.  Petruskie explained that Andy was supposed to be coming to the US to attend school, but that that he now understands that never occurred.   While Andy was staying there with Petruskie, he did little in the way of  beginning his schooling and just sat around.  With pressure from Petruskie and Andy’s parents,  Andy eventually moved to Houston, TX, where he was supposed to be getting a landscaping job and attending school.  Petruskie says that was his last contact with Andy.  

Because Andy was merely  hanging out and goofing off for the following period in the US, Petruskie said he came up with a story to tell his father.  The story was one that his father could not “check out”, because it alleged that he was doing undercover work for the U.S. government.  This, Petruskie believes, was complete “BS”.  He commented that he didn’t believe that any agency would seriously consider Andy for an type of undercover work.  Petruskie explained that Andy’s father is very strict and would not approve his goofing off here in the states.  Petruskie added that Andy was the only one of several siblings that had “done nothing”.  He also believes that Andy has had to maintain this story or else his father will throw him out of their German home. 

Petruskie maintains that these two occasions were his only contact with Andy, totaling several days.  He says that he didn’t know of Andy being at Elohiem City until much later.  He was unaware of anyone that Andy may have associated with here in the U.S. and did not recognize Mike Bresha’s  name.  

Also, he didn’t believe that Andy had the guts to point a gun at someone much less be involved in the Okbomb.  Petruskie went on to say that he only knows “what I’ve read in the papers” regarding the bombing.  He agreed to several media interviews to show there was nothing to his relationship with Andy and that it was all “above board”.  His comments about a middle-eastern connection were merely speculation based on the fact that a car bomb was used.  Otherwise, he says that a number of his comments were taken out of context.