PITTSBURGH - A woman questioned in the unsolved 2003 collar-bombing death of a pizza deliveryman who robbed a bank was notified she may be charged with bank robbery, conspiracy and a firearms count, one of her attorneys said Tuesday.
Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong, who is imprisoned for killing her boyfriend, received a federal detainer listing the charges Tuesday, said lawyer Lawrence D'Ambrosio.
D'Ambrosio, who says Diehl-Armstrong is innocent, said he does not know whether the paperwork means she has been charged.
Detainers are used to notify prison officials that charges are imminent. The U.S. Attorney's office would not comment on the detainer, but said it had scheduled a news conference to announce a "major development in the investigation" for today in Erie.
Diehl-Armstrong, 58, has been linked to Brian Wells' bank robbery and killing because her boyfriend's body was found in the freezer of a home near a TV tower where Wells made his final delivery. She pleaded guilty but mentally ill to killing her boyfriend and is serving a sentence of seven to 20 years in state prison.
The man who owned the home, William Rothstein, was questioned in Wells' death but has since died of cancer.
Wells, 46, of Erie, was caught shortly after robbing a bank just outside the city on Aug. 28, 2003.
As he sat handcuffed in a parking lot, waiting for a bomb squad to arrive, he told police that the bomb was locked onto his neck after he was sent to deliver a pizza to the TV tower. The device exploded before the bomb could be defused, killing Wells.
Investigators later found a homemade, cane-shaped firearm and a nine-page handwritten letter that included detailed instructions on what Wells was to do with the bank money and how he could unlock the collar by going through a kind of scavenger hunt, looking for clues and landmarks. The note also included a list of rules and a threat that Wells would be "destroyed" if he failed to complete his mission.
Authorities have never said whether they believe Wells was an innocent victim, a conspirator or someone who knew something about the robbery plot but did not realize the risk he faced. Wells' family believes he was just a victim.
Earlier Tuesday, a federal magistrate ruled that gag order would not be issued in the case.
Diehl-Armstrong's federal public defender, Thomas Patton, had sought the order because he believed publicity generated by today's news conference could prevent Diehl-Armstrong from getting a fair trial.
U.S. Magistrate Susan Paradise Baxter said: "Although more publicity will surely ensue in this matter, Diehl-Armstrong has not met her burden of showing that an impending press conference by the U.S. Attorney's office to announce an anticipated indictment against her has any substantial likelihood of resulting in prejudice to a possible defense at trial or the due administration of justice."
Patton did not return several messages left by The Associated Press on Monday and Tuesday.
D'Ambrosio, Diehl-Armstrong's personal attorney, has said he believes she had nothing to do with Wells' death, but may have known the people behind the robbery.
The Erie Times-News, citing an unnamed source, reported that an acquaintance of Diehl-Armstrong also received a detainer notifying him that he could face similar charges.