June 11 (Reuters) – Police in northwestern Idaho arrested more than two dozen members of a white nationalist group on Saturday and accused them of planning a riot near an LGBTQ pride event, authorities said.
Lee White, chief of police in the city of Cor d’Alen, told reporters that 31 members of the Patriotic Front face charges of a crime of conspiracy to revolt and that additional charges could be filed later.
A local man noticed the men in white masks and shields boarding a U-Haul truck and called police, telling the emergency dispatcher that White said he “looked like a small army.” Police stopped the truck about 10 minutes after the call.
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A video taken at the scene of the arrest and posted online shows about 20 men kneeling next to the truck with their hands tied, wearing khaki pants, blue shirts, white masks and baseball caps.
Police in riot gear guard a group of men police say are among 31 arrested for rioting and linked to the Patriot Front after being found in the back of a U Haul van near an event. of Pride at the Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA, June 11, 2022 in still image from video. The Southern Legal Center for Poverty describes the Patriotic Front as a white nationalist group that seceded from a similar organization, Vanguard America, after the deadly United Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. ABC Affiliate KXLY through REUTERS.
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Police found at least one smoke grenade and documents including an “operational plan” from the truck, as well as shields and shin guards, all of which are clear, White said.
“They came to riot in the center,” he said.
The men come from at least 11 states, White said, including Texas, Colorado and Virginia.
The Patriotic Front was formed after the 2017 United National Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, when it split from another extremist organization, Vanguard America, according to the Southern Legal Center for Poverty, which tracks hate groups.
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Report by Joseph Ax; Edited by Daniel Wallis
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