District Attorney James Catterson has charged three men with conspiracy to commit murder. Another suspect, Edward Zabo of Medford, was arrested the following day. Canisters of radium and other more conventional weapons were found in Ford's and Zabo's homes.
Exact motives are unclear.
Ford was once an officer of the court, and is president of the Long Island UFO Network. Recent comments on Usenet discussed Ford's UFO work, including an alleged alien crash site on Long Island. Ford told other UFOlogists his life was in danger because of his UFO investigations. The targets of this alleged murder plot were Republican officials from Suffolk County and a nuclear power plant safety director. One of the people contacted by Ford to do the deed went to the DA and a sting was arranged.