Inside the Deadly Waco Siege Negotiations | I Was There

The Waco siege of 1993 started on February 28th when the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) began the stand-off with the religious sect, the Branch Davidians. The group was led by David Koresh, whose birth name is Vernon Howell. The Branch Davidians, consisting of 91 members, including 25 children, resided in a compound east of Waco, called the Mount Carmel Center. Under the suspicion of stockpiling weapons, the ATF attempted to serve search and arrest warrants. Having been warned of the raid, the Branch Davidians were prepared. This initial gunfire battle resulted in deaths on both sides (4 ATF agents and 6 Branch Davidian members) prompting the FBI to become involved. For the following 51 days, the Branch Davidians and law enforcement were at a long and gruesome stand-off, tragically resulting in a fire that took the lives of 76 members. In this episode of “I Was There“, VICE meets with Byron Sage, a retired FBI agent, who was one of the lead negotiators during the Waco siege of 1993. Click here to subscribe to VICE: About VICE: The Definitive Guide To Enlightening Information. From every corner of the planet, our immersive, caustic, ground-breaking and often bizarre stories have changed the way people think about culture, crime, art, parties, fashion, protest, the internet and other subjects that don’t even have names yet. Browse the growing library and discover corners of the world you never knew existed. Welcome to VICE. Connect with VICE: Check out our full video catalog: Videos, daily editorial and more: More videos from the VICE network: Click here to get the best of VICE daily: Like VICE on Facebook: Follow VICE on Twitter: Follow us on Instagram: The VICE YouTube Network: VICE: MUNCHIES: VICE News: VICELAND: Broadly: Noisey: Motherboard: VICE Sports: i-D: Waypoint: #waco #branchdavidians #davidkoresh