Man Arrested After Posting Essay On Rewarding Assassins Vancouver Resident Charged With Attempting To Impede Irs

A Vancouver, Wash., man who posted an essay on the Internet about a system of rewarding assassins of public officials has been charged with two felonies.

James Dalton Bell, 39, was charged Wednesday with attempting to impede Internal Revenue Service agents and with using false Social Security numbers.

Bell, who was arrested May 18, will remain in custody here until his July 18 arraignment before U.S. Magistrate J. Kelley Arnold, said U.S. Attorney Annmarie Levins.

IRS agents raided Bell’s home in April, saying he had written and posted on the Internet an essay, “Assassination Politics,” that advocated killing federal officials.

Bell has acknowledged writing the essay, but says he was theorizing and not advocating killing anyone.

In the raid, agents seized Bell’s computers and some chemicals, including one alleged to be a precursor to the deadly nerve gas sarin. Bell, who has a degree in chemistry, said the chemicals were for his own experiments.

In affidavits and at a May court hearing, the government alleged Bell is dangerous and persuaded Arnold to order him held in jail.

The IRS alleges Bell stink-bombed the Vancouver IRS office in March, and researched and collected the names and addresses of about 70 IRS employees.

Agents contend Bell also has used four false Social Security numbers since 1984 in an alleged attempt to obstruct the IRS.