<P> Before any evidence could be introduced to say otherwise, the media presented stories to the public that accused individuals within Middle Eastern groups . At this time in America, stereotypes that focused on the Arab race had affected many American Arabs within the United States . These stereotypes may have impacted how individuals acted after the bombing, and can explain why the media assumed that Middle Eastern groups were responsible . In the case of the Oklahoma City Bombing, Hamzi Moghrabi, chairman of the American - Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, blamed the media for the attacks on Muslims and Arabs that took place just days after the bombing . </P> <P> As the rescue effort wound down, the media interest shifted to the investigation, arrests, and trials of Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, and on the search for an additional suspect named "John Doe Number Two ." Several witnesses claimed to have seen a second suspect, who did not resemble Nichols, with McVeigh . </P> <P> Those who expressed sympathy for McVeigh typically described his deed as an act of war, as in the case of Gore Vidal's essay The Meaning of Timothy McVeigh . </P> <P> The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) led the official investigation, known as OKBOMB, with Weldon L. Kennedy acting as Special Agent in charge . Kennedy oversaw 900 federal, state, and local law enforcement personnel including 300 FBI agents, 200 officers from the Oklahoma City Police Department, 125 members of the Oklahoma National Guard, and 55 officers from the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety . The crime task force was deemed the largest since the investigation into the assassination of John F. Kennedy . OKBOMB was the largest criminal case in America's history, with FBI agents conducting 28,000 interviews, amassing 3.5 short tons (3.2 t) of evidence, and collecting nearly one billion pieces of information . Federal judge Richard Paul Matsch ordered that the venue for the trial be moved from Oklahoma City to Denver, Colorado, citing that the defendants would be unable to receive a fair trial in Oklahoma . The investigation led to the separate trials and convictions of McVeigh, Nichols, and Fortier . </P>

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