OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – The government’s star witness in the Oklahoma City bombing case is looking forward to spending time with family after serving his sentence, his attorney said Wednesday.

The U.S. Bureau of Prisons this week sent victims of the 1995 bombing and relatives of those killed letters informing them that Michael Fortier would be released from custody on Friday.

Fortier, who was taken into custody in August 1995, agreed to a plea deal and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Good-behavior time credits are allowing him to get out now, said his attorney, Michael McGuire.

“Essentially, he has served about 85 percent of his sentence, which was all he was supposed to serve. He got no special favors or anything like that,” McGuire said.

Fortier received three years of supervised release under federal sentencing guidelines, McGuire said.

“I think he’s in a very strong, upbeat mood to be with his family and is looking forward to spending very personal time with them and getting resettled with them,” McGuire said.

Fortier and his wife, Lori, knew about Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols’ plot to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, an explosion that killed 168 people.

The Arizona couple testified against McVeigh, who was executed in 2001, and Nichols, who has been sentenced to life in prison in state and federal courts. Lori Fortier was granted immunity from prosecution.

One of the victims of the bombing said she was shocked Michael Fortier was getting out and hoped he wouldn’t lead a life of crime.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets right back into what he was into and get into trouble,” said Janet Beck, a Social Security Administration claims representative who survived the blast. “That’s my complaint against the justice system. They’re so busy trying to control people, they don’t do much in terms of education and helping them to readjust.”

Martin Cash, a Veterans Administration employee who lost his left eye in the blast, was among the victims who filed a petition seeking to provide testimony at Fortier’s 1998 sentencing.

“I understand the plea bargain, which was in order to get him to testify, but I think the plea bargain should have been, “We’ll give you life instead of giving you the death penalty,”‘ said Cash, who retired from the VA in 1996. “I’m just sorry he’s getting out.”

McGuire said Michael and Lori Fortier remain married and that she has remained in Arizona. McGuire would not comment on whether Fortier is part of a witness protection program.

“I think there are a lot of people that want to target him, but I’m not sure where Michael and his family will be, where it’s safe for him to be,” McGuire said.

McGuire and federal officials declined to reveal where Fortier had been incarcerated. As for Fortier’s future, McGuire could only speculate.

“I don’t think he’s got all the answers yet,” McGuire said. “He needs to spend some time with family to get those.”

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