4 more members of the United States armed forces are actually under investigation for their ties to some white nationalist group, military authorities have confirmed to HuffPost.
The lance corporal in the Marines, the master sergeant in the Air Force, an expert in the Army, and a private within the Minnesota National Guard have been recognized as belonging to Identity Evropa , an organization listed by the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Regulation Center being an extremist group.
There are now an overall total of 11 Identity Evropa associates known to be under investigation by the Oughout. S. military. Last month, HuffPost found seven other U. S. servicemen were getting investigated over their connections towards the group.
The investigations, that could last for months, are looking into if the 11 servicemen violated military guidelines regarding discrimination and extremist exercise. All 11 could face expulsion from the armed services, or even end up being court martialed and potentially sentenced to time in prison.
Users of Identity Evropa, like a number of other white nationalist groups, have lengthy used the messaging platform Discord in order to chat with one another. Last month the particular independent media collective Unicorn Huge range obtained Identification Evropa’ s Discord messages plus published them online.
Since that time a network associated with anonymous anti-fascist activists have mined those messages for clues regarding the offline identities of the Identity Evropa members, most of whom posted upon Discord under fake names. The exposed by anti-fascist activists are usually police , teachers , a lawyer and associates of the U. S. military.
HuffPost has verified the details of the four servicemen exposed within this report. The Discord messages they will posted show a U. Ersus. Marine, an airman, a enthusiast and a National Guardsman all progressive in white nationalist memes plus jargon. All four also participated within Identity Evropa events and propaganda campaigns.
Identity Evropa was founded simply by an ex-Marine named Nathan Damigo, who served in the Iraq Battle. After returning to the U. H., Damigo robbed a cab operater, whom he mistook for being Iraqi, at gunpoint. He spent 4 years in prison — in which he was further radicalized after reading through a book by former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke — and formed Identity Evropa on his release.
The group’ s members helped organize the particular violent and deadly 2017 white-colored supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va, and the group has been busy since attempting to recruit new members, especially on college campuses.
The brand new revelations offer further proof how the U. S. military has fought to keep extremists out of its own rates.
Just this past February, government authorities arrested Coastline Guard Lt. Christopher Hasson, who also prosecutors allege corresponded with an un-named white nationalist leader as he stockpiled firearms and compiled a hitlist of leftists and media numbers he planned to kill included in a plot to establish a “ white homeland. ”
Within January, a former Marine and Iraq War veteran named Curtis Allen was sentenced to 25 years within federal prison for his component in a bomb plot targeting Muslims in Kansas. Allen belonged to an anti-Muslim militia team called “ The Crusaders. ”
Last year 22-year-old Brandon Russell — a Florida National Safeguard soldier and a leader of a murderous neo-Nazi group the Atomwaffen Division — was sentenced to five years in jail after authorities discovered explosive components in his garage. (They also uncovered a framed photo of Timothy McVeigh in Russell’ s bed room. McVeigh, a U. S. Military veteran, was executed for their role in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, which killed 168 people. )
Ed Beck is a previous Marine and Iraq War experienced who in recent years has worked to expose fascists in the ranks of the U. T. military. He says the military requires a better screening process for employees. Many of the 11 Identity Evropa people in the military were “ open up about their beliefs on social media marketing. ”
“ A brief, actually semi-educated investigation would’ ve already been enough to raise suspicions and club them, ” Beck said. “ These repeated failures should create everyone deeply skeptical of the military’ s stated attitude toward whitened power and right-wing extremism. ”
Still, the problem of white-colored nationalists in the military is much bigger than the 11 Identity Evropa users identified over the past month. A Army Times poll in 2017 found that nearly 25 % of service members have experienced white nationalists within their ranks. A good FBI report upon extremism in the military, which examined case files from 2001 in order to 2008, found over 200 army personnel or veterans who were energetic members in white supremacist organizations.
“ At a certain stage we have to realize we’ re swatting at flies, and ask ourselves what’ s rotting — why are a lot of white power extremists drawn to this specific institution? ” Beck, the former Sea, told HuffPost. “ The particular military (and law enforcement) draws in right-wing extremists and white supremacists because of its function and history — what it has done, what it still will, and what it subsequently means within American society. ”
Listed below are four U. S. servicemen within Identity Evropa, which recently rebranded itself as the American Identity Motion.
The Marine
Logan K. Piercy is a lance corporal in Alpha Co, 4th Lighting Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 4th Sea Division, in the Select Marine Allows Reserve, a spokesman for the army branch confirmed to HuffPost.
Within the Identity Evropa Discord server, he or she goes by the username “ Logan, ” often posting photos associated with himself participating in the white nationalist group’ s events, including the Memorial Day outing to Fortification Rosecrans National Cemetery in North park; a day cleaning up trash on a The southern part of California beach, and a hike in order to San Diego’ s Potato Nick Rock.
“ Logan” may also be seen in Facebook photos posted simply by Logan K. Piercy’ s members of the family.
In Discord, Piercy usually posted photos of Identity Evropa flyers he placed on college campuses throughout southern California, including in the University of California at Hillcrest, where public records show Piercy signed up.
He also posted hyperlinks to blogs he wrote on the since-deleted website called EcoAmerican. all of us. Records show that website has been registered to Piercy.
Piercy can be seen in the Discord messages organizing for people to join Identity Evropa plus pay their membership dues. “ Being aware that Jews are not White-colored is still required for IE membership on the interview level, ” he had written in February.
His Discord messages are anti-Semitic and hurtful, and he appears to have a particular admiration for Andrew Anglin, the fugitive neo-Nazi behind the site The Daily Stormer, which advocates gassing Jews.
Piercy also posted in a separate Discord server called “ Charlottesville. second . 0” — also attained by Unicorn Huge range — where white supremacists prepared the deadly 2017 Unite The proper rally. A month before the rally, Piercy posted a photo of Adolf Hitler. “ REMOVE KIKE, ” this individual wrote above the photo, utilizing the common slur for Jewish individuals.
The Discord logs show that will Piercy attended Unite The Right, and can be seen in photos from the event, which usually ended with a fellow neo-Nazi generating his car into a crowd associated with counter-protesters, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer.
Piercy, who the Discord text messages show has recently moved to Montana, failed to respond to request for comment as to the continuous military investigation into his membership rights in Identity Evropa.
“ The Marine Corps is aware of the particular allegations surrounding Lance Corporal Piercy’ s alleged participation in the team, ” Col. Theodore Wong, the spokesman for the Marine Corps, informed HuffPost in a statement. “ There is absolutely no place for racial hatred or even extremism in the Marine Corps. ”
“ The Ocean Corps will investigate the accusations and take the appropriate disciplinary actions if warranted, ” Wong said.
A Learn Sergeant In The Air Force
Previously this month, a group of anti-fascist active supporters and workers called Colorado Springs Antifa — dealing with an Oregon based group known as Eugene Antifa — published a report exposing Air Power Master Sergeant Cory Allen Reeves as a member of Identity Evropa.
The Air Force confirmed to HuffPost that will Reeves is a master sergeant. He’ s stationed at Schriever Surroundings Force Base near Colorado Springs.
“ We are aware of this claims and Air Force officials are searching into it, ” an Air Drive spokesman told HuffPost.
Reeves posted under the name “ Argument associated with Perigree” in the Discord server, frequently sharing photos of himself.
One photo — a selfie in which Reeve’ h face is clearly visible — matches a 2016 photo of Reeves printed in a military newspaper . The selfie also fits footage of Reeves talking to a nearby TV station in Hawaii, in which he was previously stationed for the Air Push.
Reeves appears to have been an extremely energetic member of Identity Evropa, often stimulating members on Discord to pay over their $10 monthly membership fees, and traveling to far-away Identity Evropa events in New York and Nashville.
He was also a legendary propagandist. Reeves frequently posted pictures of the Identity Evropa flyers he’ d placed throughout Colorado.
In one series of photos, he noted his trip to the Aurora Migration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Digesting Center & Detention Facility within Aurora, Colorado — a prison for immigrants.
“ MIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT, ” learn one Identity Evropa flyer Reeves placed outside the facility, featuring a picture of a little blonde girl. “ THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO FOR OUR NATION. ”
After reaching out to Reeves for comment, HuffPost received a message from his lawyer, Andy Gene Strickland, a Florida man who had been also recently exposed as a member of Identity Evropa.
“ MSgt Cory Reeves is really a highly decorated Airman with 15 years of service to our country, ” Strickland’ s email read. “ I respectfully submit that making a news article based on an unknown social media post generated by mysterious and faceless individuals who, by their very own admission, are anarchists is extremely careless. ”
Strickland’ s email did not deny that will Reeves was part of Identity Evropa.
Reeves, Strickland wrote, is usually “ free to join a accountable and professional organization” without “ fear or reprisal by Division of Defense officials. ”
The Minnesota National Guardsman
In Identity Evropa’ s Discord group, a user named “ Hyphenstein ” posted only 30 moments. He shared photos of the group’ s flyers he’ d positioned on the University of Minnesota campus, mentioned paying his membership fees and discussed getting ready for bootcamp.
“ Last day within Minnesota before army basic coaching, ” Hyphenstein wrote in a Feb post. “ Wish I could make it to [Identity Evropa’s Leading Our People Forward conference]. Seems like a lot of fun! ”
A search for your username “ Hyphenstein” elsewhere on the web revealed clues as to this Identification Evropa member’ s true identification.
A “ Hyphenstein” upon Steam — a video game application frequently used by white supremacists to communicate with one another — listed his name as Toby James Schmidt and his home since Minnesota. Schmidt used a photo associated with Reinhard Heydrich as his user profile photo on Steam. Heydrich was obviously a high-ranking Nazi figure during Ww ii and a main architect of the Holocaust.
A user on the website NoFap, which usually helps people with porn addiction, can also be named “ Hyphenstein. ” That will user lists his birthday to be in August of 1999 — the same month and year that will Andrew James Schmidt was born.
A “ Hyphenstein” on Instagram listed his name as James, along with a “ Hyphenstein” on Twitter detailed his name as James Schmidt.
In the Discord records, Hyphenstein mentions that he will be knocked up to rank E-3/Private First Class instantly at boot camp.
Schmidt can be seen within photos on basictrainingphotos. com in uniform with the position of E-3 Private First Class.
After HuffPost emailed the Mn National Guard with this evidence that certain of their recent recruits is a white-colored nationalist, a spokesman said Schmidt had been removed from basic training.
“ Private Andrew James Schmidt has been recalled from initial fundamental training and will drill individually till resolution of an investigation into their actions and affiliations is completed, ” Major Scott Hawks told HuffPost.
HuffPost could not reach Schmidt for comment. Messages left together with his family went unanswered.
The Army Soldier
Earlier this 30 days, an anonymous group of anti-fascist active supporters and workers in the Pacific Northwest — who function the Twitter account @WANaziWatch — published compelling proof that an Army soldier named Jonathan Gould is a member of Identity Evropa.
Gould, they said, posted in the Discord logs under the name “ Lonewolf19d. ” The activists determined this simply by connecting biographical information Gould published in Discord to information submitted on the neo-Nazi message board Stormfront, furthermore under the name “ Lonewolf19d. ” (Stormfront is one of the largest, and darkest, systems for Nazis in the country. One document connected Stormfront users to almost one hundred murders through 2009 to 2014. )
Public records show Gould has resided in both Washington and Ohio. Upon Discord, he posted multiple pictures of Identity Evropa propaganda he’ d placed in those states.
He also discussed his amount of time in the military. “… during a variety brief in the army an NCO used the saying ‘ being Jewish’ when referring to being stingy… I put to stop myself from LOL’ e, ” Gould wrote in a blog post.
In October 2017, Gould posted a new piece of propaganda he’ d created. “ Don’ t kno [sic] if this is the right place for this, yet a little photoshopping i did, ” he or she wrote in Discord.
Their creation was a take on the Army’ s famous Uncle Sam recruitment poster. But whereas the original World War II poster stated “ I want YOU for your U. S. Army, ” Gould’ s photoshop changed the information to “ I want YOU to become a white advocate. ”
Plenty spokesperson confirmed to HuffPost that Gould is a specialist, rank E-4 jr in the Army. A military standard confirmed to HuffPost that Gould happens to be under investigation for his connections to Identity Evropa.
Gould did not respond to a request for opinion.
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