Thursday, March 23, 2006

Californian held in bizarre Bolivian bombing case


A presumably very troubled man from the small northern California town of Placerville is being held by Bolivian authorities for allegedly setting off bombs at several hotels in the South American nation.

At first glance, the accused, Triston Jay Amero--also known as Claudio Lestat--would be able to supply enough material for a weeklong conference of psychiatrists. At second glance, perhaps a month's worth.

From the Sacramento Bee, (free reg. required):

Bolivian police were puzzling Thursday over the possible motives of a former Placerville resident accused of killing two people and wounding at least seven by setting off bombs in Bolivian hotels. He described himself as a Saudi Arabian lawyer, a pagan reverend, even a vampire, having adopted the name of the main character in Anne Rice’s dark novels.

Triston Jay Amero, 24, ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the El Dorado Union High School District Board in 2002. Amero, who listed his occupation with the El Dorado County Elections office as a "Clergyman/process server," lost during the June 2002 election, having only garnered 5.56 percent of the vote, according to Bee archives.

In Bolivia, Amero said he was running from the law in California, where he served time in juvenile prisons, and has tried for years to renounce his U.S. citizenship while wandering around South America on a shoestring, looking for women - and getting into more trouble. He said he was jailed in Argentina where authorities said he tried to bomb an ATM machine.

I wouldn't be surprised if it's also revealed that Amero/Lestat also has an interest in the criminal career of Ted Kacyzinksi.

Hat tip to our man in Northern California, Third Wave Dave.

UPDATE 8:05PM CST: Dave has a picture of Lestat on his site, linked above. Wall Street Cafe points out the power of blogging by directing me to this Chilean newspaper site, which published a picture, a more frightening one, of Amero/Lestat.

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