After being discovered piled into the back of a U-Haul truck with riot gear near an Idaho pride celebration, more than 30 members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front were detained.
When Coeur d’Alene police stopped the U-Haul and began arresting the men on the side of the road, they were dressed in khakis, navy blue shirts, and beige hats with white balaclavas covering their faces.
At a press conference, Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White remarked, “They came to riot downtown.”
After residents reported seeing the ‘small army’ getting inside the truck about 1.38 p.m., police charged all 31 with conspiracy to riot, a misdemeanor, according to local news station KREM2.
At least 11 states were represented in the arrests, according to White, including Washington, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Colorado, South Dakota, Illinois, Wyoming, Virginia, and Arkansas. Idaho was the only state represented.
According to him, the males were going through the booking process on Saturday afternoon and will be arraigned on Monday.
Authorities discovered that the gang was intending to riot in various parts of downtown, not only the park, based on evidence and documents, White said.
The men are shown kneeling on the grass with their hands zip-tied behind their backs in videos released on social media. On the back of one shirt, the words ‘Reclaim America’ were scrawled.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, Patriot Front was formed after the 2017 white nationalist ‘Unite the Right’ rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, when it split from another extremist organization, Vanguard America.
The vehicle was stopped near Paul Bunyan on Northwest Boulevard, close to where the Pride festival was taking place. At least one smoke grenade was found, as well as riot gear.
They also discovered paperwork from the truck, including a ‘operations plan,’ as well as shields and shin guards, all of which clearly stated their objectives, according to White.
They had arm patches and cap emblems that identified them as Patriot Front members, he claimed.
According to White, police learned about the U-Haul from a tipter who stated “it seemed like a little army was loading everything into the car” in a hotel parking lot. Soon after, officials noticed the truck and pulled it over, he added.
The men were led one by one to the front of patrol cars, where they were stripped of their masks and taken to a police van.
The truck was parked near the Coeur d’Alene Pride in the Park event, which was hosted by the North Idaho Pride Alliance.
During the event, police had increased their presence in the vicinity.
‘It looks these people did not come here to participate in peaceful festivities,’ said Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris to a reporter from the Coeur d’Alene Press.
The Southern Poverty Law Center describes Patriot Front as “a white nationalist hate group” that established in the aftermath of the tragic “Unite the Right” demonstration in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.
The Southern Poverty Law Center said of the Patriot Front, “Patriot Front concentrates on theatrical speech and activities that can be easily circulated as propaganda for its chapters around the country.”