White nationalists accused of planning riots get bail out of Idaho prison According to Reuters
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Police officers guard a group of men, who police say are among 31 people arrested for riot plots and with links to the Patriotic Front group, after they were arrested found in the back of a U Haul van near the Pride event in Coeur d’Al
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By Joseph Axe
(Reuters) – 31 members of the white nationalist group Patriot Front, arrested in Idaho over the weekend on suspicions of plotting to grossly disrupt an LGBTQ pride event, have been released. released from prison and will appear in court for the first time in the coming weeks, a court official said Monday.
According to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Sheriff Lee White, the men, arrested Saturday after the U-Haul hire truck they were driving overturned, face charges of conspiracy to riot , according to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Sheriff Lee White.
A local resident called the authorities after spotting a group of men, all dressed in similar clothing, wearing white scooter-style masks and carrying shields, loaded onto the truck “like a team.” small army,” White said.
Police stopped the truck about 10 minutes after the call, a short distance from the “Pride in the Park” event, he said.
Karlene Behringer, trial court administrator in Kootenai County, confirmed that the men have been released from prison and will appear in court at a later date.
At a news conference on Monday, White said authorities had no prior knowledge of the group’s plans in Coeur d’Alene, an Idaho Panhandle city about 380 miles (612 km) north of the capital, Boise. .
“One lesson we have for our community … is that an involved citizen can prevent something terrible from happening,” White said.
Video taken at the scene of the arrest and posted online shows a group of men in police custody, kneeling next to the truck with their hands tied, wearing similar khaki pants, blue shirts, and masks. white page and baseball cap.
Officers seized from the truck at least one smoke grenade, a collection of shields and shin guards, and documents including an “operational plan,” White said over the weekend, at the same time, adding that these items made their intentions clear.
“That level of preparation is not something you see every day,” he said. “It was immediately clear to us that this was a riot group.”
White said the men were from at least 11 states around the country, including Texas, Colorado and Virginia.
Since his arrest, White said, he and others in his department have received death threats. He did not give details.
The Patriotic Front was formed after the 2017 white nationalist “United Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, when it split from another extremist group, Vanguard America, according to China. Southern Poverty Law Center, which specializes in monitoring hostile groups.
Saturday’s proud event, described by organizers as the largest ever in Northern Idaho, drew a crowd of several hundred festivalgoers, local media reported. including a talent show and hours of drag queen dancing.
“We’re in the same city we were in last week,” Coeur d’Alene Mayor Jim Hammond said Monday. “We are a city that respects everyone, welcomes everyone.”
KREM-TV in Spokane reported that several smaller groups turned out to protest the gathering, with dozens of people seen carrying guns on the edge of the park in what organizers said was an attempt to intimidate. LGBTQ event attendees.
