FBI arrests alleged neo-Nazis

The United States charged three suspected members of the white supremacist group The Base with federal gun and immigration crimes, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland announced Thursday. The FBI arrested U.S. citizens Brian Mark Lemley and William Garfield Bilbrough IV and Canadian citizen Patrik Mathews, who entered the United States illegally. Federal authorities also charged Lemley and Bilbrough with illegally harboring Mathews.

What precipitated the arrest? “Within The Base’s encrypted chat rooms, members have discussed, among other things, recruitment, creating a white ethno-state, committing acts of violence against minority communities, the organization’s military-style training camps, and ways to make improvised explosive devices,” the complaint read. Authorities did not find evidence the men were planning an attack on a specific target, but the complaint noted the men possessed a semi-automatic rifle and at least 1,500 rounds of ammunition. The three men were planning to attend a gun-rights rally next week at the Virginia Capitol in Richmond to protest proposed restrictions on firearm purchases. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, earlier this week declared a state of emergency, temporarily banning weapons from the Capitol grounds.

Dig deeper: Read Sophia Lee’s feature in WORLD Magazine about former white supremacists.