Report Says McVeigh Admitted to Blast

NEW YORK — Timothy J. McVeigh admitted his involvement in the Oklahoma City bombing during a lie-detector test given by his lawyers, Newsweek magazine reported.

But McVeigh failed a question about whether all his co-conspirators are known to investigators, and that may suggest that others were involved in the April 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, the magazine reported in this week’s edition.

The report of the test is attributed to anonymous sources close to the investigation.

“McVeigh confirmed his role in blowing up the Murrah building,” the magazine reported. “There is even fresh confusion about whether the FBI has tracked down all the members of the conspiracy.”

It said some federal investigators think the lie-detector story may be just a ploy by McVeigh’s lawyer, Stephen Jones, to sow confusion before the trial begins.

The defense did not respond to the report of a lie-detector test but said the Newsweek report offers insight into the prosecution’s case.

“This detailed outline of the prosecution’s theory proffered to the press far surpasses anything we have received from the prosecution through the legal process,” the defense said in a statement. “We welcome any and all such assistance, both now and in the future.”

Newsweek reported on investigators’ probe of the blast, including how agents located McVeigh, collected evidence--such as the axle from the truck used in the bombing--and got witnesses to talk.