Shoshanna Utchenik
ticklethewire.com
An affidavit unsealed in federal court reveals a bomb plot in Minnesota involving white supremacists.
The affidavit details the investigation into white supremacist Joseph Benjamin Thomas’ plot to blow up the Mexican consulate in St. Paul, Minnesota, reports the AP. Thomas, 42, and Samuel James Johnson, 31, wanted to form a militant supremacist group called the Aryan Liberation Movement targeting minorities, liberals, and government officials.
Authorities have been observing them as potential domestic terrorists since 2010, however Thomas is not facing any terrorism-related charges. He was indicted in April on four charges related to possession and sale of methamphetamine, according to the AP, while Johnson was indicted on weapons charges. Johnson was found with 5 weapons including a semi-automatic assault rifle, despite having prior convictions which bar him from owning weapons.
Mark Pitcavage, Anti-Defamation League director of investigative research, said it’s hard for prosecutors to prove terror charges based on plotting alone.
“In my 18 years of having tracked extremists, I think that weapons charges are among the most sure to stick,” he said, according to AP. “Weapons charges are pretty common among most major right wing extremist movements because they love guns.”
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