US jury convicts leader of neo-Nazi threat campaign

SEATTLE – A national assemblage successful Seattle connected Wednesday convicted a person of a neo-Nazi run to endanger journalists and Jewish activists successful 3 states.

The assemblage deliberated for astir 90 minutes Wednesday pursuing a two-day proceedings earlier convicting 25-year-old Kaleb Cole of 5 felony charges, including conspiracy, mailing threatening communications and interfering with a federally protected activity. He could look a decennary successful situation erstwhile Judge John C. Coughenour sentences him successful January.

Cole, astir precocious of Montgomery, Texas, was a person of a hatred radical called Atomwaffen Division. He and 4 others were charged past twelvemonth with having cyberstalked and sent Swastika-laden posters to journalists and employees of the Anti-Defamation League successful Washington state, Arizona and Florida, telling them, “You person been visited by your section Nazis,” “Your Actions person Consequences,” and “We are Watching.”

The posters included images specified arsenic a hooded fig preparing to propulsion a Molotov cocktail astatine a house, and the words “Death to Pigs" — the aforesaid connection followers of Charles Manson scrawled successful victims’ humor during a location penetration murder.

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Cole has been connected instrumentality enforcement’s radar since astatine slightest 2018, erstwhile helium was stopped astatine U.S. Customs upon returning from a travel to Europe. Authorities searched his compartment telephone and recovered photos of him astatine assorted sites passim Europe, displaying a achromatic supremacist emblem and performing the Nazi salute.

In 2019, Seattle constabulary obtained an “extreme hazard extortion order” against him, seizing 9 guns from his home. They said Cole had “gone from espousing hatred to present taking progressive steps oregon mentation for an impending ‘race war.’”

Those steps including organizing paramilitary-style “hate camps” successful Nevada and Washington, investigators said.

During the trial, victims testified astir the interaction of receiving the posters, the U.S. attorney's bureau said successful a quality release. Some temporarily near their homes and installed information systems; 1 bought a weapon and took a firearms information class; and different near her occupation arsenic a journalist.

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In his closing argument, adjunct U.S. lawyer Thomas Woods told the assemblage Cole “was not simply sending a connection of hate, helium was sending a connection of terror.”

Cole did not telephone immoderate witnesses oregon attest connected his ain behalf. His attorney, Chris Black, argued that the posters did not represent threats.

“What we person present is simply a radical of disillusioned young men who privation to judge that they are engaged successful immoderate benignant of propaganda warfare with journalists and organizations similar the Anti-Defamation League,” Black said. “But they ne'er engaged successful violence. They ne'er planned violence. And astir importantly, they ne'er intended to pass an existent menace to perpetrate violence.”

His 3 co-defendants pleaded blameworthy and person already been sentenced, with the different person of the conspiracy, Cameron Shea, receiving a three-year word aft apologizing and saying, “I cannot enactment into words the guilt that I consciousness astir this fearfulness and symptom that I caused.”

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Johnny Roman Garza, of Queen Creek, Arizona, was sentenced to 16 months for affixing 1 of the posters connected the chamber model of a Jewish journalist.

Taylor Parker-Dipeppe, of Spring Hill, Florida, received nary situation clip for attempting to present a flier but leaving it astatine the incorrect address. Parker-Dipeppe was severely abused by his begetter and stepfather and hid his transgender individuality from his co-conspirators — the justice recovered that helium had suffered enough.

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