WAS SHINGTON – In the days of the January 6 riots, Thomas Edward Caldwell, a clear leader of the far-right Oath Keepers, gave a message to military members that he planned to fight Congress: “This kettle is set to boil. ”
Court documents were unsealed on Tuesday, stating Mr Caldwell, 66, of rural Virginia, advised others on December 1, “When we gather on the streets, it starts on January 5 and 6 in Washington DC. Let’s try to certify some crude on Capitol Hill, with a million or more patriots on the streets. “
Mr. Cuddwell and two associates from Ohio – Donovan Kroll, 50, and Jessica Watkins, 38, were charged with conspiracy to commit federal crimes. The trio confessed to attacking the Capitol to reporters and were also identified in videos posted on social media.
In this case the first evidence of planning in a well-known military group before the days of chaotic mob violence has come out. Investigators said they were focusing more on right-wing extremist groups to determine if any conspiracy aspects of the attack on the Capitol had been carried out in advance, with most rioters also carrying out spontaneous attacks.
Mr. Cuddwell advised military members to stay in a special comfort inn on the outskirts of Washington, according to a message cited in court documents as an excellent basis for “night hunting” – apparently fighting to oppose left-wing antifa-style inventions. Mrs Watkins apparently rented a room there under a supposed name, an FBI agent said.
Mr. Caldwell appeared virtually in federal court in Virginia on Tuesday, vowing to fight the charges against him. Arguing to be released on bond, Mr Cuddwell said he relied on machines at night to help with sleep apnea, citing his age as well as the underlying medical issues and coronavirus risk. A judge denied the request.
Federal investigators also obtained audio recordings of Mrs. Watkins’ voice during the riot from the Zello cellphone app, which acts like a walkie-talkie, and talked to others whom Oth Keepers believed to be. “We have a good group,” he said at the start of the riot, according to the charging document. “We have about 30-40. We are sticking together and sticking to the plan. The stranger replied, “Jess, we’ll see you soon.” Airborne. “
A stranger later said, “You are arresting a civilian. Arrest this legislature; We have acts of treason, a potential cause of electoral fraud. Ms. Watkin replied that she and the others were under the main dome of the Capitol, and another unfamiliar male voice encouraged her to continue, saying they had “trained.”
Accused of being part of the group, it is a very authoritarian military-style organization founded by Oath Keepers, military and law enforcement veterans who believe that shaded globalist cables are plotting to deprive Americans of their rights.
Charging documents against the trio noted that amid the generally chaotic situation when the mob began to enter the Capitol, a group wearing paramilitary gear and Oath Keepers Paraferia stood for its coordination. In one video, about 10 Oath Keepers in helmets “move forward in an organized and practiced fashion and push against the crowd gathered around the gates of the US Capitol.”
Pentagon leaders are horrified by the sight of people with military training marching shoulder to shoulder, fearing that the weapons and tactical training provided by the armed forces was once chosen. At least 12 National Guard members have been removed from duties related to the inauguration, two of them for possible links to right-wing extremist movements, Defense Department officials said Tuesday.
Others arrested in the riots have been identified as Oth Keepers, although they have not been charged with being part of an organized conspiracy.
During a hearing last week in Larry Brock Kani, Texas, who was photographed with a flexible handcuff on the Senate floor, a lawyer quoted him as saying in a Facebook post that he was linked to the Oath Keepers. Mr. Brock, a retired Air Force officer, told The New Yorker that he had found a flex cuff on the ground and did not intend to use it.
And in a criminal complaint filed Saturday against heavy metal band Iced Earth guitarist John Ryan Schaefer, accusing Capitol police of being involved in “bear spray” rioting, he said he has long held “far-right extremist views” and suggests that Oth Is a member of the Keepers.
Oath Keepers, named by members of the Constitution for their alleged intent to stick to their oaths – is not a geographical center, with scattered chapters in Oregon, Montana, Florida, Texas, Arizona, Ohio, New York and elsewhere. Some of its ideologies are filled with so-called three per cent, another paramilitary-style right-wing movement that seeks to attract veterans.
Oath keepers have a more formal formal structure, which includes bylaws and receivables. Although the organization claims to have about 35,000 members, the Anti-Defamation League, which monitors extremist groups, estimates many years ago that its membership is in the thousands.
The organization was founded in 2009 by 55-year-old Stuart Rhodes, a vague lawyer for Molana who studied at Yale Law School and once worked as an assistant to Ron Paul, a former representative of Texas Liberation. Its members expect the next new civil war.
Sam Jackson, who published a book on the organization last year, said, “It was encouraged by the support that the federal government was tyrannical and that every day the American people needed to be ready to resist that tyrannical government, while publishing a book on the organization last year.” Was and is a professor at the University of Albany specializing in issues of homeland security.
The Oath Keepers were involved in confrontations with the federal government over land issues in the West, including a 2014 shutdown between the Bundy family and the federal government in The Reagan.
And Ferguson, Mo. During the unrest that year after police killed a black man, heavily armed Oath Keepers patrolled the streets and claimed to protect businesses, but stopped after criticism of local law enforcement.
The group is also among those who have sent armed vigilantes to patrol the border with Mexico or encouraged such efforts by others.
In the weeks leading up to the Capitol attack, the Oath Keepers issued a hot call for action. Shortly after the election, a long message thanks to Mr. Rhodes was spread on far-right websites, urging volunteers to join the “Steel the Steel” rally in Washington. That being said, the Oath Keepers will provide security, including “some of our skilled special war veterans are equipped just outside of DC.”
When participants were instructed to be disciplined, the message also included what was described as the advice of an unidentified “patriot of Serbia” who said in a speech transcript that Americans would have to copy the uprising in his country 20 years ago, in which Slobodan Milosevic was ousted. Had:
“Millions of people gathered in our capital. There were not enough barricades to stop them, or the police did not make enough decisions to stop them. Police and army joined forces after a handful of hours of fighting. We attacked Parliament. And burned fake state television! We won! “
By the time the announcement for the big rally was made on January 6, the request of the Oath Keepers had been hastily accepted. An appeal to the volunteers, “considered President Trump’s last chance to help as he tries to fight to defeat foreign and domestic enemies.”
The followers were urged: “Prepare yourselves for whatever comes. Prepare your mind, body and spirit for battle, and secondly, move on! ”
Mr. Rhodes was in Washington on Jan. 6 – a special person with an eye patch because he lost his eye in a gun accident. It is not believed that he went to the capital himself.
Documents said in the charge said Mr Caldwell was “supposed to have a leadership role” in the group. His exact role has been unclear, with Mr Crowley referring to him as “commander” in a message quoted in court documents.
Mr. Cuddwell, however, believed that Mr. Rhodes was doing too little to organize the day. “I don’t know if Stevie has even gotten his call for weapons, but it’s a little frigid late,” he wrote a letter to Mr Crowell, according to court papers. “This is what we are doing on our own. We will partner with the North Carolina crew. ”
Other charging documents show Ohio’s Champion County bartender Ms. Watkins, who was arrested Monday, has links to the Oath Keepers. At the top of her account page at the parlor, she said that the social media network that attracts following is the commanding officer of the Ohio State Regular Militia, known as the Complaint, a local military organization. . Oath Keepers arrears sub-subset. “
The FBI identified Mr. Crowley, also from Champion County, as a member of the same Ohio Army.
In an FBI affidavit against the trio, the Capitol riots and their own social media postings featured some of their footage in a video of the building being arrogant.
For example, the charging document states that Mr. Caldwell sent a picture of the riot that day to someone on Facebook Messenger, “Our castle storms” and “I’m such a provocateur!” “We need to do this locally,” he wrote. Lets storm the capital in Ohio. Tell me then! “
A search of Mr. Watkins’ home after the riot – he was not there, and investigators testified that he and Mr. Kroll went to live with Mr. Caldwell – revealed such paramilitary equipment used in the riot and construction instructions to use the bleach as the primary component to plant the bomb, Charging Dock said. Was.
Other well-known defendants in the Capitol attack were released on Tuesday for a five-hour trial in Washington. Most were charged with misdemeanors and federal prosecutors did not attempt to detain them.
Among those released were Adam Johnson, 36, of Florida, who was accused of stealing the lectures of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Josiah Colt, 34, of Idho, filmed in a glowing viral image from the balcony of the Army Chamber.
Jacob Fraker and Thomas Robertson were pending trial on charges of breaking into the Capitol by two Virginia police officers.
Reporting contributors include Alan Fhrer, Mike McKinney, Rebecca Ruiz, Ben Proteas and William K. Was performed by Rashabum.
