Archive · 28 Sep 2026
Ted Kaczynski: How the FBI Caught the Unabomber
Ted Kaczynski was a very talented mathematician who later became known as the Unabomber.
He opposed modern technology and industrial society.
From 1978 to 1995, he sent or placed homemade bombs in several locations.
His attacks killed three people and hurt 23 others.
The FBI investigated the attacks for almost 18 years without knowing who was responsible.
In 1995, Kaczynski sent newspapers a long essay explaining his beliefs.
His sister-in-law recognized similarities between the essay and writing she had seen before.
Kaczynski’s brother then contacted the FBI.
Agents arrested Kaczynski in 1996 and found evidence linking him to the bombings.
Ted Kaczynski carried out 16 bombings across the United States between 1978 and 1995.
The attacks killed three people and injured 23 others, targeting universities, an airline and people linked to technology.
The FBI called the case UNABOM, short for University and Airline Bombing, which led to the media name Unabomber.
Kaczynski’s manifesto helped his brother David and sister-in-law Linda Patrik recognize similarities with his earlier writing.
Federal agents arrested Kaczynski at his Montana cabin on April 3, 1996, after finding bomb-making materials and extensive writings.
- Who
- Ted Kaczynski, whom the FBI identified as the Unabomber.
- What
- A bombing campaign involving 16 attacks that killed three people and injured 23 others.
- When
- The attacks occurred from 1978 to 1995; Kaczynski was arrested on April 3, 1996.
- Where
- The attacks occurred across the United States, and Kaczynski was arrested at his isolated cabin near Lincoln, Montana.
- Why
- Kaczynski opposed modern technology and industrial society and expressed concerns about freedom, autonomy and industrialisation.
Kaczynski's Position
Investigators' and Legal Outcome
Mental capacity
Kaczynski's Position
Kaczynski rejected the suggestion that he was mentally incapable of understanding his actions and said he was certain he was sane.
Investigators' and Legal Outcome
A psychiatrist who interviewed him diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia, while he ultimately pleaded guilty and received a life sentence.
Modern technology
Kaczynski's Position
Kaczynski argued in his manifesto that modern technological society threatened human freedom and autonomy.
Investigators' and Legal Outcome
Investigators treated the manifesto as a crucial identification lead because its language and ideas resembled Kaczynski's earlier writings.
- Birth
- 1942, Chicago
- Bombing campaign
- 1978–1995
- Attacks
- 16
- Deaths and injuries
- Three people killed and 23 injured
- Manifesto
- Industrial Society and Its Future, approximately 35,000 words
- Arrest
- April 3, 1996, near Lincoln, Montana
- Sentence
- Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole
- Death
- 2023, aged 81