Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives: Difference between revisions

The ATF was involved in the [[Waco Siege]] against the [[Branch Davidian]] religious sect near [[Waco, Texas]], on February 28, 1993. ATF agents, accompanied by the press, conducted a raid to execute a federal search warrant on the sect's compound, known as [[Mount Carmel Center|Mt. Carmel]]. The Branch Davidians were alerted to the upcoming warrant execution, but ATF raid leaders pressed on, despite knowing the advantage of surprise was lost. (ATF Director Steve Higgins had promised Treasury Under Secretary for Enforcement [[Ronald Noble|Ron Noble]] that the Waco raid would be canceled if the ATF undercover agent Robert Rodriguez reported that the element of surprise had been lost.) The resulting exchange of gunfire killed six Davidians and four ATF agents. FBI HRT later took over the scene and a 51-day stand-off ensued, ending on April 19, 1993, after the complex caught fire. The follow-up investigation revealed the bodies of seventy-six people including twenty children inside the compound. A grand jury found that the deaths were suicides or otherwise caused by people inside the building. Shortly after the raid, the bureau's director, Stephen E. Higgins, retired early from his position. In December 1994, two ATF supervisory agents, Phillip J. Chojnacki and Charles D. Sarabyn, who were suspended for their roles in leading the Waco raid were reinstated, with full back pay and benefits (with a demotion) despite a Treasury Department report of gross negligence. The incident was removed from their personnel files.<ref>{{cite news|title=2 Agents Suspended in Waco Raid Are Reinstated|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/25/us/2-agents-suspended-in-waco-raid-are-reinstated.html|access-date=November 5, 2021|work=[[The New York Times]]|agency=Associated Press|date=December 25, 1994}}</ref>