‘Unabomber’ auction comes to a close
Familes of those killed or injured by Ted Kacyznski benefit from effects sale
A government-issued auction of personal belongings seized from the remote Montana cabin of Ted Kaczynski ended Thursday, generating more than $125,000 in proceeds for families of those killed or injured by one of the 16 bombs the Unabomber sent.
From 1978 to 1995, Kaczynski’s bombs killed three people and injured 23 others.
As of 3 p.m. Thursday, a hand-written copy of Kaczynski’s manifesto had received the highest bid, closing at $20,053. Bidding in the 58-item auction closed at different times for each item. Kaczynski’s “welding mask and deerskin scabbard” was the last item to close, with bidding ending at 6:30 p.m.
His infamous hooded sweatshirt and sunglasses had received 19 bids with a high bid of $20,025 as of 3 p.m. Thursday. By that time, the auction had drawn 627 bids for a total of $127,988.
The auction was ordered by the government and run by the U.S. Marshals through the Atlanta-based General Services Administration Auctions’ website.
Other items sold on the lot included Kaczynski’s medical and mental health records, various articles of clothing, his academic records and Michigan diploma, correspondence to and from family members and Kaczynski’s bank and tax records.
Kaczynski, 69, is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty in 1998.
A U.S. district court judge ordered the lot to be sold at auction in 2010.
Kaczynski’s brother and Schenectady resident David Kaczynski helped lead authorities to his brother in 1996. When the auction began on May 18, U.S. assistant attorney David Shelledy told the Times Union that if the Kaczynski family wanted to recover any of the auctioned possessions, they would have to bid on them.
David Kaczynski, who learned of the auction while watching television, said given the chance the family would have gladly taken any letters, family photos or other possessions.
“I hope it raises a lot of money,” David Kaczynski told the Times Union on May 18. “But (the auction) is a bit disturbing to me.... There should be more attention paid to the victims, but I guess I think there has to be a more dignified way of helping them — a way that doesn’t involve celebrating the crimes.”
Shelledy said it is not uncommon for the profits of seizure auctions to go toward restitution for the victim’s families. Last year, auctions run by the U.S. Marshals brought in roughly $345 million for victims. The 18,000 assets the Marshals currently hold are assessed at roughly $4 billion.
Reach Fitzgerald at 454–5414 or bfitzgerald@timesunion.com.
Photo Gallery
Theodore Kaczynski, 53, is shown in his booking shot at the Lewis and Clark County Jail in Helena, Mont., Wednesday, April 3, 1996. (AP Photo/ho) HO
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a years-long parcel-bomb campaign in the United States. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
FILE — In this file photo from May 18, 2011, the hoodie and sunglasses used by Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, are displayed as Kaczynski’s personal items are auctioned off online with proceeds to benefit the victims’ families in Atlanta. The online auction of Unabomber memorabilia ends today with bidders vying for the most popular items: hoodie, sunglasses and hand-written manifesto. (AP Photo/David Goldman, file) David Goldman
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
Personal items that once belonged to Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, are displayed for an online auction with proceeds to benefit the victims’ families on Wednesday, May 18, 2011 in Atlanta. The items include handwritten letters, typewriters, tools, clothing and several hundred books. (AP Photo/David Goldman) David Goldman
U.S. marshals escort Theodore Kaczynski, wearing a white bullet-proof vest, into the federal courthouse on Friday, June 21, 1996. (Associated Press archive) ELAINE THOMPSON
In this April 6, 1996, archive photo, materials used by the FBI in its search of Theodore Kaczynski’s mountain cabin in Lincoln, Mont., sit outside the cabin’s door. (Associated Press archive/Elaine Thompson) ELAINE THOMPSON
FILE — In an April 4, 1996 file photo, former University of California at Berkeley math professor Theodore John Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, is escorted into the federal courthouse in Helena, Mont. The online auction of Unabomber memorabilia ends today with bidders vying for the most popular items: hoodie, sunglasses and hand-written manifesto. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, file) ELAINE THOMPSON
In this undated photo released Tuesday, May 17, 2011 by the US Marshals Public Affairs Office, displays one of the lots being sold that were owned by Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, in an online auction that begins in May 18. Proceeds from the auction will be used to compensate Kaczynskis victims. AP Photo/US Marshals Public Affairs Office)
Theodore Kaczynski, 53, is shown in his booking shot at the Lewis and Clark County Jail in Helena, Mont., Wednesday, April 3, 1996. (AP Photo/ho) HO
Three men, shown in undated photos, were among the victims of the Unabomber. Yale computer scientist David Gelernter was crippled by a mail bomb. Computer store owner Hugh Scrutton was killed in 1985 after he picked up a package sent to his building in Sacramento. Gilbert Murray, a Sacramento timber industry lobbyist, was killed by a bomb at his office. (AP Photos)
This is Theodore Kaczynski’s cabin in the woods near Lincoln, Mont.,on April 6, 1996. The one-room shack is where Kaczynski lived for some 25 years before he was captured and charged as the Unabomber. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson) ELAINE THOMPSON
Federal agents escort Theodore Kaczynski as they leave the federal courthouse in Helena, Mont., on April 4, 1996. (AP Photo/John Youngbear) JOHN YOUNGBEAR
Unabomber suspect Theodore Kaczynski is escorted into federal court by U.S. marshals William Strizich, left, and Don Combs for a hearing in Helena, Mont., in April 1996. (Associated Press archive/Douglas C. Pizac) DOUGLAS C PIZAC
Unabomber suspect Theodore Kaczynski is shown in his booking mug at the Lewis and Clark County Jail in Helena, Mont. on April 3, 1996. (Associated Press archive) HO
Photos through the years of Theodore Kaczynski. (Associated Press archives)
Unabomber supect Theodore Kaczynski, third from right, is shown with fellow math club members in the 1958 yearbook from his senior year at Evergreen Park High School in suburban Chicago. (Associated Press/Evergreen Park High School yearbook)
Unabomber suspect Theodore Kaczynski, right front, is shown with other members of the National in the 1958 Evergreen Park High School yearbook. (Associated Press archive/Evergreen High School Yearbook)
Wanda Kaczynski, left, leaves a Sacramento, Calif., federal building with her son, David Kaczynski after Theodore Kaczynski pleaded guilty on Jan. 22, 1998, to being the anti-technology terrorist known as the Unabomber. (Associated Press archive/Paul Sakuma) PAUL SAKUMA
An artist’s drawing shows Theodore Kaczynski, right, pleading guilty in a Sacramento, Calif., federal building on Jan. 22, 1998, as his attorney, Judy Clarke, lower left, his mother, Wanda Kaczynski, and brother David Kaczynski listen. Theodore Kaczynski pleaded guilty to being the anti-technology terrorist known as the Unabomber. (Associated Press archive/Vicki Ellen Behringer) VICKI ELLEN BEHRINGER
Wanda Kaczynski, mother of Theodore Kaczynski, hugs her attorney Anthony Pisceglie while her son David, left, talks to the media outside the federal courthouse in Sacramento, Calif., on Jan. 22, 1998. Earlier, Theodore Kaczynski accepted a plea bargin where he pleaded guilty to being the Unabomber in return for a life sentence without possibility of parole. (Associated Press archive/Rich Pedroncelli, POOL) RICH PEDRONCELLI
Dr. Charles Epstein, one of the victims of an Unabomber mail bomb, speaks to reporters at a news conference on Friday, Jan. 23, 1998, in San Francisco. Epstein, head of medical genetics at University of California, San Francisco, lost the tips of his fingers and had his hearing damaged in the attack in 1993. Theodore Kaczynski pleaded guilty to being the Unabomber in a plea agreement, in exchange for life in prison without parole. (Associated Press archive/Sam Morris) SAM MORRIS
This is the sketch of the Unabomber suspect the FBI released on April 25, 1995, at the Federal Building in San Francisco. On Monday, May 4, 1998, Theodore Kaczynski, who acknowledged responsibility for all 16 Unabomber attacks between 1978 and 1995, went before a judge to be sentenced as part of a plea bargain that saved him from a trial and possible death by lethal injection. (Associated Press archive)
In this April 6, 1996, file photo, the cabin of Theodore Kaczynski, partially surrounded by white plastic tape, sits at the end of a muddy, private road, hidden in a wooded setting about 300 yards from the nearest neighbor in Lincoln, Mont. (Associated Press archive/Elaine Thompson) ELAINE THOMPSON
Theodore Kaczynski looks around as U.S. Marshals prepare to take him down steps at the federal courthouse to a waiting vehicle in Helena, Mont., in this June 21, 1996, archive photo. Kaczynski eluded what was then the most intensive FBI manhunt in history for 18 years until his brother made the connection and turned him in. (Associated Press/Elaine Thompson, File) ELAINE THOMPSON
David Kaczynski, brother of Theodore Kaczynski, speaks to members of the Rotary Club of Rochester, in Rochester, N.Y., on Tuesday, April 1, 2003. (Associated Press archive/David Duprey) DAVID DUPREY
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This photo obtained May 12, 2011 courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This photo obtained May 12, 2011, courtesy of the US Marshals Service, displays one of the lots, personal belongings of the so-called Unabomber, who waged a 17-year parcel-bomb campaign in the United States, which are to be sold online to raise money for victims, officials said May 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO / US Marshalls Service) —
This undated file photograph shows Ted Kaczynski’s handwritten notes and a map with information on hidden food supplies. The manifesto and other items belonging to the man known as the “Unabomber” will be available for purchase. The U.S. Marshals Service says the manifesto written by Ted Kaczynski will be offered in an online government auction beginning Wednesday. (Associated Press / KPIX-TV San Francisco)
This undated file photograph shows Ted Kaczynski’s handwritten notes and a map with information on hidden food supplies. The manifesto and other items belonging to the man known as the “Unabomber” will be available for purchase. The U.S. Marshals Service says the manifesto written by Ted Kaczynski will be offered in an online government auction beginning Wednesday. (Associated Press / KPIX-TV San Francisco)
This photo released by the U.S. Marshals Service, displays one of the lots being sold in an online auction of the personal effects of Ted Kaczynski, aka the “Unabomber.” The U.S. Marshals auction will run from Wednesday through June 2. Proceeds from the auction will be used to compensate Kaczynski’s victims.
This photo released by the U.S. Marshals Service displays one of the lots being sold in an online auction of the personal effects of Ted Kaczynski, aka the “Unabomber.” The U.S. Marshals auction will run from Wednesday through June 2. Proceeds from the auction will be used to compensate Kaczynski’s victims.
This photo released by the U.S. Marshals Service displays one of the lots being sold in an online auction of the personal effects of Ted Kaczynski, aka the “Unabomber.” The U.S. Marshals auction will run from Wednesday through June 2. Proceeds from the auction will be used to compensate Kaczynski’s victims.
This photo released by the U.S. Marshals Service displays one of the lots being sold in an online auction of the personal effects of Ted Kaczynski, aka the “Unabomber.” The U.S. Marshals auction will run from Wednesday through June 2. Proceeds from the auction will be used to compensate Kaczynski’s victims.
This photo released by the U.S. Marshals Service displays one of the lots being sold in an online auction of the personal effects of Ted Kaczynski, aka the “Unabomber.” The U.S. Marshals auction will run from Wednesday through June 2. Proceeds from the auction will be used to compensate Kaczynski’s victims.
This 1994 drivers license photo shows Ted John Kaczynski, that was released Wednesday, April 3, 1996, by the Montana Justice Department. The manifesto and other items belonging to the man known as the “Unabomber” will soon be available for purchase. The U.S. Marshals Service says the manifesto written by Ted Kaczynski will be offered in an online government auction beginning May 18, 2011. (AP Photo/Department of Motor Vehicles, File)
Photo from video: Wanda Kaczynski and her son David Kaczynski as they leave Wanda Kaczynski’s Glenville apartment early on April 4,1996. They are the mother and brother of Theodore Kaczynski. (WRGB video) WRGB VIDEO