PatrickPretty.com

Tag: Alaska militia groups

  • SPECIAL REPORT: Domain Registered To Purported JSS Tripler Operator Features Videos Of ‘Sovereign Citizen’ Accused In Alleged Alaska Murder Plot Against Public Officials; Meanwhile, Americans Listen To ‘Frederick Mann’ Tell Them That Even A ‘1-Year-Old’ Can Have An Account And That Adults Can Open Accounts For Others; Separate Sites Have Links To Antitax Screeds And Debt-Elimination Schemes

    From grainy "BigBooster" YouTube video dated June 6, 2007. "Hi, Frederick Mann here," the video begins — with Mann speaking in what may be British or South African English. Mann, who identified himself in 2008 as an AdSurfDaily promoter three months before the U.S. Secret Service conducted a raid on ASD's Florida headquarters, was the featured guest in a conference call last week for JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid. He is the purported operator of the "program."

    Visitors to BuildFreedom.com are greeted by a drop-down ad for JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid that encourages them to register with a free Gmail address from Google for the outlandish “program” and its purported return of 2 percent a day.

    At least 11 videos featuring Francis Schaeffer Cox are accessible on the BuildFreedom page, which features remarks attributed to Frederick Mann and others.

    Mann is the purported operator of JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid. Here is part of what he relates in written form on BuildFreedom in the context of Cox and others:

    “To what extent do the people and activities featured so far on this page provide real solutions? How far do they go toward neutralizing the real enemies? What activities need to be added to increase the prospects for freedom?”

    The remarks appear to have been written prior to the arrest of Cox and others in an alleged “militia” plot on U.S. soil.

    In 2011, Cox, 27, was arrested on charges of plotting the murders of state and federal officials in Alaska. In January 2012, a superseding federal grand-jury indictment was returned against Cox and two alleged accomplices.

    Based on its research, the PP Blog is reporting today that BuildFreedom.com is registered to Frederick Mann at an address in South Africa. At least two other sites registered to Mann at the same address — JustBeenPaid.com and BigBooster.com — have been used to drive traffic to the JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid “program.”

    The BigBooster website uses the same drop-down ad for JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid that appears on the BuildFreedom domain.

    As the PP Blog reported in October 2011, the BigBooster domain was used in 2008 to drive traffic to AdSurfDaily, which the U.S. Secret Service described as an online Ponzi scheme involving at least $110 million. In November 2011, ASD figure and purported “sovereign citizen” Kenneth Wayne Leaming of Spanaway, Wash., was arrested by an FBI Terrorism Task Force on charges of filing false liens against at least five public officials involved in the ASD case.

    In December 2010, ASD President Andy Bowdoin was charged criminally with wire fraud, securities fraud and selling unregistered securities. Bowdoin’s program advertised a payout rate half of that advertised by JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid.

    The Conference Call

    Separately, the PP Blog is reporting today that Frederick Mann was the featured guest on a conference call for JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid last week. The Feb. 23 call appears to have been hosted by an American — and Americans and persons from at least one other country (Canada) appear to have quizzed Mann on the investment scheme after joining the “program.”

    Whether the conference-call participants were aware of the BuildFreedom domain and Mann’s written comments on Cox and “neutralizing the real enemies” is not known.

    The American (likely) who served as the call host was a woman who appeared to speak U.S. English. She described Mann as a “mathematical genius,” but did not say whether JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid was authorized to sell securities to U.S. citizens. Nor did she say whether she was a registered broker-dealer or whether others promoting the “program” were required to be registered in the United States and other jurisdictions.

    Mann also did not speak to any issues concerning securities, including whether the “program” was properly registered in all jurisdictions in which it conducts business and whether individual promoters needed to be registered.

    The first person who asked Mann questions during the call identified himself as “Randy” from “South Dakota.” Another caller who identified himself as “Chester” from “North Carolina” also quizzed Mann, who appears to speak British or South African English — or perhaps English from a different part of the world.

    The call was conducted one month to the day after CONSOB, the Italian securities regulator, announced that the actions of certain JSS Tripler promoters were under investigation. The CONSOB action was not addressed in the call, which also featured commentary or questions from “Michael” from “San Francisco” and others.

    During the call, Mann asserted — among other things — that there was no “age discrimination” in JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid.

    “So, theoretically,” he intoned, “even a one-year person” can participate.

    And, he noted, adults were permitted to open accounts in the names of other adults and that registrants could send money to JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid via AlertPay, SolidTrustPay, LibertyReserve and Perfect Money.

    All four of the processors are referenced in U.S. court filings as processors for alleged or proven fraud schemes.

    In response to a question from “Edward” (nationality unclear) about whether JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid had a “contingency plan” in case problems with payment processors developed or if government “harassed” them, Mann suggested that LibertyReserve and PerfectMoney were part of a fail-safe strategy.

    “Even if AlertPay and Solid  Trust Pay get shut down, that won’t stop” the program, Mann said.

    In response to a question from “Potato” from “California,” Mann also suggested it was possible to open accounts without a Social Security number that that members could open accounts for others, including teen-aged grandchildren in another U.S. state — even if a grandparent didn’t know the Social Security numbers of their grandchildren and the grandchildrens’ parents did not give permission to open the accounts.

    Who would be responsible for the tax consequences of opening accounts in the names of others was not discussed.

    The call appears not to have been limited to participation by Americans. A person who identified himself as “Mark(?)” from “Alberta” also was on the call.

    At least one of the persons on the call complained that the “program” was confusing. Even so, he ventured that this is “quite a deal.”

    In response to a question about where the “program” was located, Mann claimed JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid was “not located in any specific part of the world. We’re all over the planet.”

    “Oh, OK, cool,” the caller who asked the question replied to Mann.

    It was unclear from the call whether all participants who listened in or asked questions understood that the governments of various jurisdictions have acted forcefully against similar “programs” over the years, bringing both civil and criminal prosecutions.

    Other Domains That Reference Frederick Mann

    On a domain styled Mind-Trek.com, Fredrick Mann is quoted as writing, “In order to legally and safely beat the IRS it is necessary for you to adopt a certain frame of mind. You need to have a certain independence of mind. You need to be able to read the U.S. Constitution for yourself. You need to be able to recognize how the Supreme Court ‘judges’ and other politicians routinely violate the Constitution. You need to realize that practically all lawyers and accountants are handmaidens of the ‘terrocrats’ – terrorist bureaucrats or coercive government agents.”

    Similar antitax screeds appear elsewhere on the domain. Although the domain data lists a company that uses the word “Freeman” as part of its name and a contact address in Arizona, the address appears to be nonexistent in the state. Based on the registration data, the actual address of the purported owner may be in the area of Fort Smith, Ark.

    Arkansas business records show data on similarly named business entities in the state, but it is far from clear whether the “Freeman” entity listed in the domain-registration data was one of those firms.

    Based on its research, the PP Blog also is reporting today that a second domain that uses the Arizona address of Mind-Trek.com exists. That domain, which also appears to confuse Arkansas and Arizona in registration data, is styled TerrorCrat.com. “TerrorCrat” is a phrase Mann has used in his writings. The domain currently resolves to a parked page that beams advertisements.

    Meanwhile, this Twitter account purportedly for BigBooster suggests that Mann is an “Internet entrepreneur” from Arizona.

    The PP Blog initially learned about the BuildFreedom domain through a URL that appears under Mann’s name on the BigBooster site. That URL resolved to the BuildFreedom domain. When accessed, it loads the landing page of the BuildFreedom domain, the drop-down ad for JSSTripler/JustBeenPaid and two videos and 11 links pertaining to Francis Schaeffer Cox, the purported Alaska “sovereign” indicted in the alleged murder plot.

    Also during the course of its research, the PP Blog observed writings attributed to Mann on a domain that sought to attract customers for debt-elimination schemes. Such schemes also have been advanced by so-called “sovereign citizens.”

    A domain that lists Mann as the author of an introductory piece makes a reference to a purported “Indian” tribe. Although it is possible that the tribe is legitimate, some “sovereign citizens” who have no Indian heritage and no standing either as “Indians” or courtroom litigants have married debt-elimination schemes to purported tribal membership in bizarre bids to hamstring prosecutions and target litigation opponents and public officials with vexatious lawsuits.

    Some AdSurfDaily members have been linked to the same kind of vexatious legal filings, which sometimes included threats to arrest judges and attorneys that represent banks in collections-related litigation.

  • BULLETIN: Alaska ‘Sovereign Citizens’ Charged In New Indictment; Feds Say Francis Schaeffer Cox Had ‘Armed Security’ Force That ‘Stop[ed] Private Citizens Without Lawful Authority And Under The Force Of Arms’

    Francis Schaeffer Cox

    BULLETIN: A new superseding indictment has been returned in federal court in Alaska against purported “sovereign citizens” and “militia” members Francis Schaeffer Cox, Coleman L. Barney and Lonnie G. Vernon.

    In addition to the original charges outlined in an the first superseding indictment, the trio now is accused of conspiracy to kill federal officers and officials, according to the FBI.

    Cox further is charged with soliciting Barney and Vernon to murder federal officers, the FBI said.

    And  Cox, 27, Barney, 36, and Vernon, 57,  “are all charged with additional counts involving the carrying of firearms during a crime of violence,” the FBI said. “In addition to these charges, the indictment includes criminal forfeiture allegations relating to several seized firearms, silencers, and destructive devices.”

    Cox allegedly has asserted courts have no authority over him. The superseding indictment alleges that Cox and his militia colleagues, despite their sovereign posturing and beliefs the government has no legitimate authority over them, apparently divined themselves the right to assert authority over private citizens.

    Among other things, the indictment alleges that Cox had an armed security force and somehow persuaded himself that a federal “hit team” had been sent to Fairbanks to assassinate him, according to the indictment.

    With Cox scheduled to make a television appearance in November 2010, Cox, Barney, Vernon and others “developed a tactical plan to provide security for COX,” according to the new indictment. “Part of the tactical plan included the wearing of body armor, the possession of hand grenades, arming with semi-automatic weapons, the possession of 37mm launchers loaded with Hornets Nest anti-personnel rounds along with the creation and implementation of a deadly force policy in the event the federal agents arrived to arrest or attempt to kill COX.”

    On Nov. 23, 2010, according to the indictment, Barney, Vernon and others “established a tactical and armed perimeter security force of militia members around COX while COX was doing the television interview,” according to the indictment.  “This perimeter security force, among other things, trespassed on the private property of local citizenry while ‘patrolling’ on COX’s behalf, constructed a vehicular funneling point in order to stop and inspect the vehicles and identities of private citizens, and did, in fact, stop private citizens without lawful authority and under the force of arms.”

    The armed security detail asked citizens “for names and identification and prevented citizens from traveling either to their place of employment or their own private residences,” according to the indictment.

    While stopping citizens, Barney had “a semi-automatic assault rifle, an AR-15 .223 rifle,” according to the indictment..

    Attached to the “rail mount” of the semi-automatic rifle “was a 37mm launcher,” according to the indictment. “Loaded inside the 37 mm launcher was a ‘Hornets Nest’ anti-personnel round.”

    For his part, Vernon had “a semi-automatic assault rifle, a Sig Arms AR-15 .223 rifle,” according to the indictment.

    Also in November 2010 — apparently after divining himself the right to use armed guards to interrupt the free travel of private citizens — Cox paid for 16,000 newspaper ads, according to the indictment.

    Here is how the ads read:

    “The laws of The Judiciary appear to have been fraudulently displaced by a privately owned for profit corporation deceptively named the ‘Alaska Court System.’  This corporation and the Alaska Bar Association are under criminal investigation. If you have had a case decided without full disclosure of the true nature of the ‘Alaska Court System’ the damages can be corrected. Judgments can be overturned and you may be entitled to restitution! A public meeting to explain the process in simple laymen’s terms will be held at the CARLSON CENTER ON DECEMBER 1, AT 6:30 PM . . .”

  • BULLETIN: ‘Sovereign Citizen’ Accused In ‘Two For One’ Plot To Murder Judges, State Troopers In Alaska; ‘Militia’ Had Acquired Grenades, Grenade Launcher, Machine Guns; Another Man Charged Separately In Plot To Kill Federal Judge

    Francis "Schaeffer" Cox

    BULLETIN: (UPDATED 7:04 P.M. EDT (MARCH 14, U.S.A.) Five residents of Alaska with ties to the so-called “sovereign” citizen and “militia” movements have been charged under state law in an alleged plot to kidnap or murder Alaska state troopers and a state judge in Fairbanks.

    One of the suspects was charged separately under federal law with threatening to kill U.S. District Judge Ralph R. Beistline and a member of Beistline’s family. Beistline was presiding over a civil tax case involving one of the state-level defendants, and was targeted “in retaliation for and on account of the performance of his official duties,” according to the indictment.

    Charged federally was Lonnie G. Vernon, 55, of Salcha.

    Vernon also was charged under state law. Also charged in the state case were Francis “Schaeffer” Cox, 27, of Fairbanks;  Karen Vernon, 64, of Salcha; Coleman Barney, 36, of North Pole;  and Michael O. Anderson, 35, of Fairbanks. Karen Vernon is Vernon’s wife.

    Anderson was charged with conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping and tampering with evidence. Charges against the other defendants include conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to commit arson and misconduct involving weapons.

    Cox and “others” had acquired hand grenades, a grenade launcher, a .50-caliber machine gun, a .30-caliber machine gun, “dozens” of assault rifles and pistols and “thousands of rounds of ammunition,” according to the state complaint.

    Cox filed “nonsensical” pleadings while awaiting trial in a March 2010 case in which he was charged with not announcing he was concealing a handgun when he approached a police officer, according to the state complaint.

    In a YouTube video of a court hearing dated Dec. 14, 2010, Cox declared himself a sovereign being and said he did not recognize the authority of the court. Perhaps to amplify his disrespect for the court, he wore a hat when addressing the judge.

    “Wait, wait, wait, wait. No, no,” he told the judge. “If I get an invitation [for] next week, I’m going to treat it like an invitation to a Tupperware party.”

    “I won’t be here,” he declared.

    In October 2010 — with his trial date approaching in February 2011 — Cox began “amassing multiple caches of assault rifles and prohibited explosive devices,” including the grenades and machine guns, according to the charges.

    Just prior to his Feb. 14 trial date, Cox informed authorities he would not show up for trial. When he did not appear, a bench warrant was issued.

    The FBI had infiltrated the militia group at least by Feb. 12 and “lawfully recorded” conversations that occurred as the probe moved forward, according to the charges.

    Cox, according to the complaint, discussed a “241” program, which was shorthand for “two for one.”

    The plan “called for his militia to respond to attempts to arrest or kill him by responding against state court or law enforcement targets with twice the force and consequences as happened to him or his family,” according to the state complaint.

    Cox ventured that his arrest would constitute a “kidnapping” that, under the “241”plan,  called for two state targets to be arrested, meaning “kidnapped,”  according to the complaint.

    “If he was killed, two state targets would be killed,” according to the complaint. “If his house was taken, two state target houses would be burned.”

    And Cox talked about drilling a state judge “in his forehead,” according to the complaint.

    A Twitter account referenced in the state charging document includes this Jan. 26 post:

    “The DA made a motion to bar me from talking about the constitution in court! LOL He’ll be work’n as Chip N’ Dale dancer if he keeps this up.”

    In December 2010, according to the state complaint, Cox told a state judicial officer that “we know where all the Troopers live, we have you outmanned and outgunned and could probably have  you all dead in one night.”

    At a Cox-related hearing in December, Cox advised a  a state judge that “you’re now being treated as a criminal engaged in criminal activity and you’re being served in that manner.”

    Also present at the hearing was person described only as “Ken.” “Ken” declared himself a militia member speaking on behalf of Cox, saying he was Cox’s representative and “counsel before God,” according to the state complaint.

    The complaint also alleged that Cox or “others” acting “on his behalf — in the days leading up to the trial date — filed “multiple pleadings” that made no sense. The pleadings demanded the charges against Cox be dismissed and made “other claims,” according to the state complaint.

    Prosecutors did not describe the nature of the claims. “Sovereigns” have been known to threaten judges and members of law enforcement with criminal and civil prosecution and file claims for alleged damages. In some cases, “sovereigns” have placed liens for astronomical sums against public servants.

    Meanwhile, the complaint alleges that surveillance was being conducted on potential targets of the militia and that Cox was able to pinpoint on a map the residences of state troopers and judges.

    One state trooper reported being photographed at a gas station, possibly by Michael Anderson, one of the defendants in the state case.

    On Feb. 14, the date Cox was supposed to be in court for his trial, he met with the Vernons at their home, according to the state complaint.

    When the discussion turned to what would happen if authorities arrived to arrest Cox, Lonnie Vernon allegedly said, “I’ll take all the sons of bitches I can with me. They’ll die a miserable death too.”

    Later in February, Cox said that women and children could become casualties of the “241” plan, according to the complaint.

    One militia member told Cox that he was not “into killing women and children.” Cox, according to the complaint, responded by saying that he “would not target a woman or child, but if their kids get killed in the process, so be it.”

    Cox went on to say that, to make a point, “I’m not against sending somebody’s head in a box.”

    Later, Cox declared it his duty to oppose “the tyrant judge . . . who does not follow the constitution.”

    On Feb. 26, according to the complaint, Cox discussed the publication of “wanted dead or alive posters” that would include the faces of police officers, an assistant district attorney, a court clerk and a state judge.

    Lonnie Vernon allegedly claimed there is going to be a “bunch of dead mother-fuckers before all this is over,” according to the complaint.

    And Karen Vernon said the Vernon home would go “up in smoke” before law enforcement could take the couple’s property.

    Cox is the head of the “Alaska Peacemaker’s Militia,” according to the state complaint.

    After he determined the offered price for six hand grenades was reasonable, he speculated about leaving his hiding place in the home of Coleman Barney after the militia had acquired more weapons, including a handgun with a silencer, according to the complaint.

    Cox talked going to Montana to assure the safety of his family, and returning to Alaska to engage in “guerilla warfare,” according to the complaint.