By Steve Neavling
The U.S. Navy veteran charged with ramming an SUV into a security gate at the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office has online ties to QAnon-related content and even wrote “I love you” to Donald Trump, according to research by Advance Democracy.
The nonpartisan nonprofit group that researches online extremism said 48-year-old Ervin Lee Bolling has a history of espousing numerous conspiracy theories on social media platforms, WIRED first reported.
Bolling was arrested Monday afternoon after his car barrelled into the security gate. Video from the scene shows a red SUV wedged against a retractable barrier outside the office. A search of the car uncovered no explosives.
Authorities have not disclosed any motives.
But research by Advance Democracy shows Bolling has a history of far-right posts on social media.
His account on X, formerly Twitter, has been set to private, but dozens of posts are still visible through the Internet Archive.
In December 2020, Bolling appeared to respond to a post about a federal government stimulus bill that stated, “Wonder what it will take for people to wake up.”
His account responded, “I’m awake. Just looking for a good militia to join.”
Someone responded, “A good militia is meeting January 6th in DC.”
Another post included a YouTube video titled “Release The Kraken,” a reference to Trump attorney Sidney Powell’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bolling posted memes on Facebook, including reasons to “get yourself an unvaccinated girl” and “a virus with a 99% recovery rate” that would “strip me of my freedoms, my job, my constitutional rights and put me under house arrest.”
Records indicate that Bolling has worked as an insurance broker at Bankers Life since 2018. He’s married with three daughters, according to Bankers Life’s website.
Bolling was enlisted as a submarine warfare specialist for more than 20 years with the Navy.
