FBI Arrests 'Violent Extremists' After Threatening Posters Sent to Minorities, Journalists in Seattle Area

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The FBI has arrested at least two people described by the agency as "violent extremists," believed to have ties to the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen, after an investigation that included threats mailed to Western Washington journalists and racial and religious minorities.

The FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office will hold a news conference with details of the arrests Wednesday morning.

The Seattle Times has obtained an FBI "Situational Information Report" sent to law enforcement earlier this month that details the threats and contains copies of racist and anti-Semitic posters mailed to individuals on Mercer Island and residents of Edmonds and Seattle.



The posters contain imagery such as swastikas and a hooded figure in a skull mask, with language such as "We know where you live" and "Your actions have consequences."

The identities of the journalists or other recipients of the letters were not released. The FBI report states that some had been involved in "doxxing" members of the group, a reference to the harassing practice of posting someone's personal information on social media.

"As of late January 2020, identified members of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division (AWD) conducted a propaganda campaign targeting the homes of journalists and religious minorities in and around Seattle," the report states. "AWD members mailed threatening posters to the target's homes via the U.S. Postal Service. The purpose of the campaign was to intimidate racial and religious minorities, and specific journalists who have written articles and news stories on AWD, some of which included the doxxing of AWD members."