A woman claiming to be the girlfriend of the male suspect who set off the Christmas Day explosion in Nashville on Friday reported to police last year that he was building explosives in his recreational vehicle.

At about 6:30a.m. on Christmas morning last week, an RV belonging to Anthony Warner, 63, exploded in downtown Nashville on Second Avenue in front of an AT&T transmission building. The blast damaged dozens of buildings spanning the entire city block and blew out telecommunications systems in the Southeast for several days.

Imagine if a Muslim man filled his RV with explosives and drove to downtown Nashville, Tennessee, with the express purpose of setting off a weapon of mass destruction. Imagine if he then parked his explosives-laden vehicle outside of the AT&T building and then proceeded to carry out a suicide bombing that damaged more than 40 buildings and injured at least eight people, including police officers. Do you have any doubt that this bomber would be called a terrorist?

With federal officials having identified the man believed to be behind Nashville’s Christmas Day bombing, authorities now turn to the monumental task of piecing together the motive behind the explosion that severely damaged dozens of downtown buildings and injured three people.

While officials on Sunday named Anthony Quinn Warner, 63, as the man behind the mysterious explosion in which he was killed, the motive has remained elusive.

Anthony Q. Warner, 63, has been identified as the "bomber" in the Christmas day explosion in Nashville by U.S. Attorney Don Cochran.

Cochran announced the update to the investigation in a Sunday afternoon news conference.

"Anthony Warner is the bomber. He was present when the bomb went off, and he perished in the bombing," Cochran said.

DNA found at the scene was matched to samples taken at another location searched by investigators, TBI Director David Rausch said Sunday. The TBI was involved in testing the evidence.

The FBI has confirmed that Anthony Warner, 63, was the culprit behind a Christmas Day bombing in downtown Nashville.

"Based on the evidence that we got at this point, we’ve come to the conclusion that an individual named Anthony Warner is the bomber," U.S. Attorney Don Cochran said, adding that Warner perished in the explosion.

Law enforcement officials have identified the man behind the Nashville RV bombing on Christmas Day, saying they have now determined that he was killed in the explosion.

Police on Sunday told BuzzFeed News that Anthony Quinn Warner, 63, was the suspect. His identity was first confirmed to the Tennessean.

In a press conference later on Sunday, officials announced that DNA of human remains found at the scene were matched to Warner.

Sweeping communications outages continued to plague large swaths of Tennessee on Saturday after a recreational vehicle exploded early Christmas morning in downtown Nashville. Meanwhile, federal investigators are searching for clues after the explosion that damaged dozens of buildings.

Nashville is turning from relief to resolve, Mayor John Cooper said Friday evening after an early morning explosion downtown upended Christmas Day and caused destruction for several blocks.

No known suspects nor motive have been announced behind a bomb that detonated inside a parked RV on Nashville's historic Second Avenue near Lower Broadway.

Police have found what they believe are human remains but had not confirmed any fatalities.

Nashville Mayor John Cooper praised the six quick-acting cops who evacuated buildings in downtown Nashville, putting themselves in danger to save lives on Christmas morning.

“They are heroes. And I am grateful for them and all of Nashville’s first responders,” Cooper said, CNN reported. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department identified the officers, who range from a rookie to an 11-year veteran, as:

The FBI was leading an investigation Friday into an explosion that erupted in downtown early Christmas morning, an incident that rattled residents for miles, caused destruction for several blocks and is being called "intentional" by authorities.

Mayor John Cooper, giving the last update for the evening, said the relief that not more people were injured has now turned to anger and determination to bring those responsible to justice.