List of Atomwaffen Division members in the United States who faced criminal charges

The Atomwaffen Division is a neo-Nazi terrorist network.

Members of the Atomwaffen Division have been alleged to have been responsible for a number of murders, planned terrorist attacks, as well as other criminal actions. This list contains those who have been criminally charged for activities done in connection with the Atomwaffen Division, including those who have been convicted.

Convicted members

Brandon Russell

In May 2017, the night of Arthurs' arrest, his third roommate, a 21-year-old, Brandon Russell was also arrested and questioned by local police and the FBI. While it was determined that Russell was not involved in the homicides and was released, the deaths drew investigators' attention to a large stash of explosives at the same location.

When the authorities searched Russell's garage, they found explosive precursors ammonium nitrate, nitromethane, homemade detonators and an explosive compound hexamethylene triperoxide diamine. HMTD has been used to make improvised explosive devices by groups such as al-Qaeda, and ammonium nitrate and nitromethane were used by Timothy McVeigh, the perpetrator of the Oklahoma City bombing. The authorities also found thorium and americium, two radioactive substances, in Russell's bedroom. Russell, a former student of nuclear physics at the University of South Florida and a Florida Army National Guardsman, had a framed photograph of Timothy McVeigh in his bedroom. The authorities also discovered guns, various Atomwaffen paraphernalia and neo-Nazi propaganda.

Russell was arrested again with another member in Monroe County. The car they were driving contained assault rifles, body armor and more than 1000 rounds of ammunition which they had acquired after the shooting. Russell claimed the explosives were used to power model rockets, but according to an FBI bomb technician the explosives were powerful enough to destroy an airliner. The prosecutors concluded Russell “planned to use the explosives to harm civilians, nuclear facilities and synagogues.”

In September 2017, Russell pleaded guilty to possessing an unregistered destructive device and illegally storing explosives in federal court; in January 2018, he was sentenced to five years in prison for those crimes.

Benjamin Bogard

20-year-old Benjamin Bogard was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in February 2019 after the FBI received a tip that Bogard might be planning a terrorist attack. According to an agent, Bogard talked about wanting to go cross-country to find and kill minorities, Mexicans, and women, anyone who Bogard felt was "shit". He said on one video, which he ended with a Nazi salute, "Pull out your shotgun, get to the side of the road, pump that shit open, point it at them, and pull the trigger." On Twitter, he described himself as a "future mass shooter" and said that his favorite part of a gun is "the part that kills 30 babies per trigger pull." Bogard embraced white supremacist beliefs and discussed obtaining a chemical substance to make a bomb. Bogard had also searched online for targets to bomb and planned to attack the state capitol. According to federal authorities, Bogard claims to be a member of the Atomwaffen Division. He was arrested on charges of possession of child pornography after the authorities uncovered videos of young girls being raped on his phone during the investigation. The FBI decided to arrest him because it appeared that Bogard was "mobilizing for violence." Bogard was sentenced to 80 months in federal prison for sex crimes.

Conor Climo

In August 2019 the FBI arrested 23-year-old security guard Conor Climo on suspicion of possessing parts to make a bomb. According to the FBI, Climo wanted to contribute "his knowledge of constructing explosive devices toward a 'righteous' cause” and originally joined the Baltic branch of the Atomwaffen Division. Subsequently, Climo joined the main Atomwaffen Division organization in Las Vegas, Nevada where he proceeded to plan an attack. Climo wanted to form a team of snipers who would bomb a Las Vegas synagogue and then shoot the surviving Jews. He also sketched a detailed plan to attack a gay bar from the inside and outside simultaneously, using two squads. Climo considered other targets, including police leadership and the headquarters for the Anti-Defamation League. "An AR-15 style" semiautomatic rifle, a bolt action rifle and various bomb-making components, circuits and chemicals were found in Climo's bedroom, as well as schematics of Improvised explosive devices. According to an FBI special bomb technician the materials were consistent with the items needed to function a timed explosive device. Like many other Atomwaffen members, Climo had been in the US Army in 2014 and 2015 as a combat engineer, and was trained in the use, construction, and demolition of explosives. The main leader of the Las Vegas cell of Atomwaffen Division had suggested blowing up natural gas pipe lines with thermite, and several jars of the substance were found in Climo's apartment during the raid. He pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.

Andrew Thomasberg

On September 19, 2019, Andrew Thomasberg was arrested at his home in McLean, Virginia for selling guns illegally. FBI Special Agent Shawn Matthews, whose focus is on domestic terrorism, testified that after the Unite the Right rally Thomasberg, in which he participated with Vanguard America, he joined the Atomwaffen Division, that, in Matthews' words, is "distinct in that it advocates for violence or violent acts to start a racial war in the United States." Law enforcement found 20 guns in the house Thomasberg lives in with his mother, stepfather and sister. Six of the weapons were in Thomasberg's room, and a pistol was in his car. Most of the weapons were loaded.

In group chat text messages, Thomasberg talked about a racially motivated shooting he committed and discussed in length about his use of LSD. He also displayed "significant knowledge of gun manufacture" and obtained equipment for that purpose. He said that the Poway synagogue shooting "Coulda been so good" and called Robert Gregory Bowers and Brenton Tarrant saints. He also told a friend – who is now a cooperating witness – that he was "carrying enough gear and supplies to set the new high score and wouldn’t want to have to explain that to a cop"; Matthews testified that a "new high score" referred to the number of people killed in a mass shooting. It was also revealed that Thomasberg had trained in self-defense techniques the man who shot and killed Bao Hung Van in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2018. Judge Theresa Buchanan called the evidence "extremely concerning" and denied bail.

On November 12, 2019, Thomasberg pleaded guilty to "to making a material false statement in relation to the purchase of a firearm and to possessing firearms while being an unlawful user of or addicted to controlled substances." He is expected to face a maximum of 20 years in prison once sentencing happens on February 28, 2020.

Aiden Bruce-Umbaugh

On November 4, 2019, Aiden Bruce-Umbaugh, 23, was riding in a car driven by Kaleb Cole, 24, when it was stopped by the police in Garza County, Texas. According to the complaint the deputies noticed a machete protruding from a compartment inside the car, and both Bruce-Umbaugh and Cole were wearing tactical attire. Inside of the vehicle authorities discovered several weapons, including a Sig Sauer 9mm pistol, an AR-15 rifle, an two AK-47 rifles, "between 1,500 and 2,000 rounds of ammunition" and marijuana. Bruce-Umbaugh said the guns and drugs belonged to him and he was arrested. Cole was allowed to leave the scene but later a warrant was issued for his arrest. A federal grand jury indicted Bruce-Umbaugh and he was charged with possession of a firearm by an unlawful user of a controlled substance. During the detention hearing the court also heard a recording of a phone call in which Bruce-Umbaugh told the deputies they were lucky they caught him off guard or he would have "shot the pigs". He was denied bail. Bruce-Umbaugh pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing. He is facing a maximum of 10 years in federal prison.

Neither Bruce-Umbaugh nor Cole is allowed to possess firearms. The FBI had sought an Extreme Risk Protection Order against Cole and seized his cache of weapons which included five assault rifles, a shotgun and pistols the previous month. According to the FBI Cole had also acquired separate parts needed to manufacture untraceable AR-15s. Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes told the media they “firmly believe, prevented a massacre”. Cole had previously been detained for questioning in December 2018 upon landing in Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. Several Atomwaffen members, including Cole and Bruce-Umbaugh had travelled to Germany and Eastern European countries, among them Ukraine where Atomwaffen has contacts with the Azov Battalion. The records were used by the FBI to justify the ERPO request.

Charged members

Devon Arthurs

An 18-year-old member, Devon Arthurs, of Tampa Palms, Florida, converted to Islam and described himself as a "Salafist National Socialist." In May 2017, Arthurs was accused of killing two of his roommates and fellow Atomwaffen Division members in retaliation after they ridiculed his conversion. Arthurs was arrested following a hostage situation, during which he allegedly told police that he shot 22-year-old Jeremy Himmelman and 18-year-old Andrew Oneschuk earlier that day. In 2018, following competency evaluations by two court-appointed experts (a neuropsychologist and a psychologist), Arthurs was ruled incompetent to stand trial. He spent more than a year at the Florida State Hospital where he received treatment to make him competent to stand trial. Arthurs is currently facing two counts of first-degree murder in addition to kidnapping and firearms charges. In December 2019, several experts testified that Arthurs suffers from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder among other conditions, experiences hallucinations and believes he can communicate with the dead. It was opined that Arthurs is incapable of being restored to competency and should be returned to the Florida State Hospital.

Nicholas Giampa

On December 22, 2017, 17-year-old Nicholas Giampa allegedly shot and killed his girlfriend's parents in Reston, Virginia after they forbade her to date him because of his neo-Nazi views. Giampa is open both about his admiration for James Mason, Siege, and his membership in Atomwaffen Division. After the killings, he shot himself but survived. Giampa is being held at a youth detention center in Fairfax, Virginia. In August 2018, it was ruled that the damage caused by the self-inflicted gunshot wound had left him incompetent to stand trial.

Vasillios Pistolis

In August 2017, during the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, Vasillios Pistolis, a member of the United States Marine Corps who was also a member of Atomwaffen Division, was recorded chanting "White Lives Matter" and "You Will Not Replace Us" with his fellow torch-bearing protestors on the first day of the rally. On the second day of the rally, he assaulted Emily Gorcenski, a transgender woman, with a modified version of the Confederate flag that incorporated the neo-Nazi Black Sun symbol in its center, and he even bragged about the beating in private chats under the alias of "VasillistheGreek": "So to sum it up what I did Friday, dropped kicked that tranny that made video crying", "Today cracked 3 skulls open with virtually no damage to myself", and "I drop kicked Emily Gorcenski". Pistolis was also a part of a gang of neo-Nazis that assaulted an interracial couple at a restaurant in a suburb of Nashville, Tennessee. Pistolis had promoted the Unite the Right rally on Twitter and posted an image of a car running over a left-winger with the caption "Good Night, Left Side". He also mocked the death of Heather Heyer, calling her "a fat cunt who died of a heart attack. She wasn't even in the way of the car".

Although Pistolis denied that he participated in the rally or committed a violent act, he was later investigated by the United States Marine Corps and court-martialed, and in June 2018, he was imprisoned for disobeying orders and making false statements. He was officially separated from the United States Marine Corps in August 2018.

Samuel Woodward

Main article: Murder of Blaze Bernstein

In January 2018, Samuel Woodward was charged in Orange County, California, with the murder of Blaze Bernstein, an openly gay Jewish college student. Woodward is an avowed neo-Nazi and a member of Atomwaffen Division who had attended events and training camps. Blaze Bernstein had texted a friend that he had run into Woodward and believed they were "going to hook up", telling his friend it would be "legendary". Bernstein's body was found later buried in a shallow grave, having been stabbed at least 20 times. When questioned, Woodward told that he had pushed Bernstein away as he tried to kiss him, but denied having harmed him. However, the investigators found Bernstein's blood on Woodward's knife and sleeping bag. The police went through his chat history and discovered messages from Woodward to his neo-Nazi friends where he told he was baiting gay men and discussed a previous victim. In addition to this he posted a picture of a knife with the text “Texting is boring, but murder isn’t".

According to chat logs subsequently published by ProPublica, one member of Atomwaffen Division wrote of the killing "I love this" and another praised Woodward as a "one man gay Jew wrecking crew". The logs suggested that there are around 20 Atomwaffen cells across the U.S., that some of the organization's members have taken part in weapons training, and they also show members praising Timothy McVeigh, the person who was responsible for the Oklahoma City bombing, Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof, and Norwegian mass-murderer and white supremacist Anders Breivik. The murder of Blaze Bernstein was the fifth killing that was tied to Atomwaffen Division.

Jeffrey Clark

In November 2018, authorities in Washington arrested a 30-year-old man named Jeffrey Clark on weapons charges after the FBI received a tip from his family members that he and his brother Edward Clark, 23, might be planning a massacre. It was revealed that the brothers were connected to the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect, Robert Bowers. In court, Federal prosecutors filings noted that the brothers may have known about the attack and that they openly admired McVeigh, Manson and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski and wanted to kill Jews and other minorities. According to the family members the brothers wanted to hasten up the coming race war and revolution. Online, Jeffrey Clark described Bowers as a "hero" and called the massacre a “dry run for things to come". The authorities found guns, Atomwaffen propaganda, hollow-point bullets and ballistic vests and helmets in the apartment of the Clark brothers, and according to Propublica the brothers had communicated on the Atomwaffen chatroom for initiates and members.

Prosecutors urged the court to keep Clark in detention pending trial and take his threats seriously “in light of the defendant’s access to weapons, possession of body armor, possession of high-capacity ammunition magazines, glorification of acts of violence, and proclamations that he was ‘committed to the survival of the white race by any means necessary’”. Later, the authorities managed to track down the younger brother, who was discovered dead of a gunshot wound on Theodore Roosevelt Island.

Jarrett Smith

On September 23, 2019, Specialist Jarrett William Smith, 24, of Fort Riley, Kansas, was charged with distributing information related to explosives and weapons of mass destruction. Smith had joined the U.S. Army on June 12, 2017, and as an infantry soldier, he was trained in combat and tactical operations. In March 2019, the FBI had received a tip that Smith was talking about building bombs. According to a federal criminal complaint Smith planned building a bomb "powerful enough to damage or destroy US military vehicles and obliterate civilian vehicles and people nearby" to "cause chaos" and had considered Antifa, cell towers and local news station as potential targets. In the chat logs accessed by the FBI Smith gave his fellow neo-Nazis very specific instructions on how to build IEDs, cellphone explosive devices ‘in the style of the Afghans', bombs out of household chemicals and devices and car bombs, which an FBI bomb technician confirmed were viable. He also talked about his desire to "kill...every last jew across the world" and go to Ukraine to fight with the Azov Battalion. He met with another man in the neo-Nazi network named Craig Lang who had already fought with the local neo-Nazi militias between 2015 and 2019. Lang, who currently lives in Ukraine, faces federal charges in the United States for the murder of Serafin Lorenzo and Deana Lorenzo during an armed robbery in Estero, Florida, selling weapons to fund his travels abroad and passport fraud.

Smith was identified as a member of the Atomwaffen Division, and he had also been in contact with the Baltic branch Feuerkrieg Division. He used the pseudonym "Anti-Kosmik" on social media, a reference to "Anti-Cosmic" Satanism. Assistant US Attorney Anthony Mattivi alleged in federal court that bombing a news organization was just the first step in his plan to ultimately overthrow the federal government. He also claimed that Smith distributed explosives information and was planning on assassinating federal agents with three other people "for the glory of his Satanist religion".

See Also

• List of neo-Nazi organizations