Remaining Activists Urged to Leave Oregon Refuge

BURNS, Ore. (AP) -- A day after the leaders of an armed anti-government group were arrested, authorities on Wednesday urged a handful of remaining activists to abandon the Oregon wildlife refuge they have occupied for more than three weeks, saying it was "time to move on."

Meanwhile, details began to emerge about the confrontation that occurred on a remote highway between the small towns of Burns and John Day. Followers of Ammon Bundy gave conflicting accounts of how one of the men in the two-vehicle convoy was killed during a traffic stop.

One of Bundy's followers said Robert Finicum charged at FBI agents, who then shot him. A member of the Bundy family said Finicum did nothing to provoke the agents.

There was no immediate way to confirm either account. Authorities refused to release any details about the encounter or even to verify that it was Finicum who was killed. It was unclear if Finicum or the others were armed, or if they exchanged gunfire with officers.

Also Wednesday, a federal judge in Portland unsealed a criminal complaint that said the armed group had explosives and night-vision goggles and that they were prepared to fight at the refuge or in the nearby town of Burns.

Someone told authorities about the equipment on Jan. 2, when the group took over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, according to the document. It was not clear if explosives were found or if concern about them was the reason agents moved to make the arrests.

With group leaders in jail, federal agents surrounded the refuge where the remnants of Bundy's group refused to give up on the occupation that began Jan. 2.