Nashville bomber claimed to have cancer and began giving away his possessions shortly before attack

The man responsible for the bomb attack which ripped through Nashville on Christmas Day had told acquaintances he had cancer and began giving away his possessions shortly before the attack, according to reports.

Police on Sunday night named Anthony Quinn Warner, 63, as the man responsible for the bomb. Warner was killed in the blast and identified after police used DNA found on the scene to confirm his identity.

It was matched with samples found on the motorhome which exploded injuring three people and damaging dozens of businesses. The vehicle was also registered to Warner.

Warner, an unmarried IT specialist, had announced his retirement three weeks before the attack, his colleagues told the New York Times.

The 63-year-old had also told an ex-girlfriend that he had cancer and given her his car, according to the newspaper.

Records show that Warner had also signed away his home the day before Thanksgiving on November 26.

Detectives said they were still investigating the motive behind the suicide bomb attack. One line of inquiry is thought to be whether it was triggered by paranoia over 5G technology.

The motorhome was parked close to a building owned by telecommunications giant, AT&T.

“All of us locally feel like there has to be some connection," Nashville's mayor, John Cooper, told CBS's Face the Nation.

The explosion in the heart of America's country music capital disrupted mobile, internet and TV services across central Tennessee and parts of four other states as well as grounding flights at Nashville Airport.

Damage to the AT&T switching center was so extensive that the communications company had to drill access holes into the wreckage to connect generators to critical equipment, as well as pump three feet of water from the basement. The company said it had made "significant progress" in restoring its services.

Detectives in Nashville said they were still following up on hundreds of tips from members of the public. Warner's home in nearby Antioch was searched by FBI agents over the weekend as well as a Nashville real estate agency where he had worked on computers.

Estate agent Steve Fridrich, said Warner had been contracted as an IT consultant for his company for about five years. But earlier this month Warner emailed him to say he would be retiring.

“He’s a nice guy, and this seems uncharacteristic of the Tony we know,” Mr Fridrich told the New York Times. “He was very professional and knew his stuff.”

The estate agent said he was asked by police whether Warner had expressed any views about the conspiracy theory that 5G technology was being used to spy on ordinary Americans. Mr Fridrich, one of 500 people who contacted the authorities, said he had not.

Another more prosaic explanation could be linked to a family connection to the telecommunications giant. US outlets reported that Warner’s father had worked for BellSouth, a communications firm which was bought out by AT&T.

Detectives in Nashville said they were still following up on hundreds of tips from members of the public.

Warner's home in nearby Antioch was searched by FBI agents over the weekend as well as a Nashville real estate agency where he had worked on computers.