Aspen Recreates New Year’s Eve After ‘Mass Death’ Bomb Scare

By Guest Column —— Bio and Archives January 2, 2009

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ASPEN, Colo. — They rang in 2009 a day late in Aspen after a former resident unhappy that his hometown has become a resort playground for the wealthy vowed "mass death" and left four bombs around downtown before killing himself.

Aspen police say James Chester Blanning, a 72-year-old who skied competitively as a teen but had grown bitter about his hometown, walked into two downtown banks Wednesday afternoon and left gift-wrapped bombs made of gasoline and cell phone components. Blanning also left notes demanding cash and saying "Aspen will pay a horrible price in blood" if his demands were not met. The typewritten notes said he was targeting four banks, police said, but only two — a Wells Fargo Bank and a nearby Vectra Bank — received the packages...more