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Tag: sovereign citizen group

  • 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.

  • SPECIAL REPORT: Woman Blocked By Federal Judge From Filing Claim In ASD Case Notarized $9.2 Billion ‘Lien’ Against Hospital In Washington State; Kenneth Wayne Leaming Sought To Attach ‘All Tangible’ Property Of Franciscan Healthcare Facility

    Kenneth Wayne Leaming, also known as Kenneth Wayne.
    Kenneth Wayne Leaming, also known as Kenneth Wayne.

    UPDATED 8:03 A.M. ET (U.S.A., Nov. 23) A Washington state notary public stripped of her license last month notarized a purported “admiralty” lien for the colossal sum of $9.24 billion against Franciscan Heath Systems, the faith-based operator of St. Clare Hospital of Lakewood, Wash., according to records.

    The Franciscan tradition in Washington state traces its roots to 1891, when the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia founded St. Joseph Hospital in Tacoma. St. Clare is a 106-bed facility that serves Lakewood, Spanaway, Steilacoom, DuPont, University Place and other communities in Pierce County, according to records.

    The purported lien, acknowledged with the seal of notary Tina M. Hall, was in favor of her business colleague, Kenneth Wayne Leaming, according to records in Pierce County.

    Both Hall and Leaming are listed as officers of American International Business Law Inc., a Spanaway company some members of Florida-based AdSurfDaily say is performing legal work on their behalf.

    U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer of the District of Columbia has blocked bids by both Hall and Leaming to file pleadings in the ASD case. Hall lost her notary license last month after notarizing a string of bizarre documents in Washington state. The nature of the documents she sought to file in the ASD case, which is being prosecuted in the District of Columbia, has not been disclosed publicly.

    Some ASD members have said they intended to pursue an admiralty claim against the government.

    Leaming, using the notary services of Hall, sought in June 2009 to attach “all tangible and intangible property” of the hospital, including its fixtures, furnishings, motor vehicles, bank accounts, passbooks, saving certificates, stock certificates, lines of credit, inventories, promissory notes, office equipment, educational equipment — and even its mineral and water rights, according to records.

    Hall’s license was revoked about 14 months later. The precise reason for the revocation — and whether the documents filed against the hospital played any role in the revocation decision — was not immediately clear.

    Other records show that Hall has filed similar documents on Leaming’s behalf in other cases. One of them was for $10 million against members of the City Council of Puyallap, Wash.

    Hall also notarized documents for other clients, including a filing styled an “Affidavit of Alternative Obligation” for $100 million against a bank dubbed an “agent” for the Internal Revenue Service.

    Such scorched-earth filings have been referred to in other cases as “paper terrorism,” a litigation approach that is designed to rattle the nerves of judges, prosecutors, attorneys and courtroom opponents. ASD member Curtis Richmond has been associated with such filings in a separate case in Utah. In the Utah case,  Richmond was among a group of litigants sued successfully for racketeering after a purported “Indian” tribe with which they were involved placed a bogus lien against a county prosecutor for $250 million.

    Leaming, who was accused in 2005 of the unauthorized practice of law in Washington state, was dubbed “Postmaster” in the bizarre filing against Franciscan Heath Systems, the hospital, Pierce County Court Commissioner Mark Gelman and others.

    Members of law enforcement were expressly warned in the notarized document not to attempt to “negate” Leaming’s wishes to attach the property of the hospital and others. Parties who attempted to interfere “shall be deemed outlaws and/or felons and shall be prosecuted,” according to the filing.

    If filing liens against a hospital that has the responsibility for tending to the needs of entire communities were not enough, Leaming also filed liens or claims against the Washington State Bar Association, members of the Practice of Law Board and others.

    These liens were styled “commercial liens” or “admiralty” claims or “international claims.” On Oct. 16, 2009, a judge ruled them null and void and ordered Leaming to pay the attorneys’ fees and court costs of his targets. The judge also imposed a $10,000 sanction against Leaming to be paid to the Washington State Bar Association’s Lawyer’s Fund for Client Protection.

    See earlier story about the revocation of Hall’s notary license for “professional misconduct.”

    See earlier story about ads listing Leaming as an attorney being pulled from prominent websites.

    See earlier story about threatening email received by some ASD members.

  • UPDATE: Cornell University Seeks To Determine If Man Referenced In Email Circulated By ASD Members’ Group Is Licensed Attorney; Website Listing For Kenneth Wayne Leaming Under Review

    UPDATED 11:04 A.M. ET (U.S.A.) Cornell University said Sunday that it will remove a listing on its Law School website for Kenneth Wayne Leaming of Spanaway, Wash., if Leaming proves not to be a licensed attorney. A review of the listing and the circumstances under which Leaming’s name was added to a database of attorneys’ names is under way.

    A person named Kenneth Wayne Leaming of Spanaway, Wash., was accused in 2005 of engaging in the unauthorized practice of law, according to a document that appears on the website of the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA.) Meanwhile, a person by the same name is referenced by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) as a “self-described ‘recognized international lawyer’ and a member of an “extremist group” known as “Little Shell Pembina Band of North America.”

    The group is known to have ties to Washington state, according to ADL.

    Leaming, according to ADL, once served as a deputy sheriff and member of the Civil Rights Task Force, a “sovereign citizen group that has used badges and raid jackets to resemble law enforcement officers.”

    Cornell noted that Leaming should “have provided us with documentary proof of his law license” before his name was published on a website the Law School runs in partnership with Justia.com.

    “[O]bviously that needs to be double-checked at this point for validity or alterations,” said Thomas R. Bruce, director of Cornell’s Legal Information Institute. “Of course we’ll remove him if he’s not what he claims to be.”

    As part of its partnership with Justia, Cornell publishes free listings for licensed attorneys across the United States. Leaming’s name appears in listings on both the Cornell Law School site and the Justia site.

    Leaming’s name also appears in a listing at Oyez.org, another Justia-affiliated site that publishes information on cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.  Whether Leaming, whose listings advertise a practice in Spanaway, is a licensed attorney is unclear.

    The listings, which advertise a fee structure and areas of practice such as Admiralty/Maritime, Business Law, Estate Planning and Native American Law, do not reference any law school attended by Leaming or law degree obtained. Bruce said the university would work with Justia to review “verification procedures used to make sure that those who claim to be attorneys actually are.”

    Whether Leaming has a law degree and is licensed to practice law in any state remains unclear. Bruce said the document published on the WSBA website “certainly paints an unfavorable picture.”

    Leaming goes by the nickname “Keny” and is associated with an entity known as “AMERICAN-INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS LAW INC.,” according to the listings on the Justia-connected sites.

    Last week members of Florida-based AdSurfDaily received an email that referenced “Keny” and the same business entity referenced in the attorney listings published by Cornell and others.

    The email, which appears to be a compendium that cobbles together communications from members of a group within ASD and asks ASD members to pass along the information, implies that ASD members who file for restitution through a government-approved process may face legal action from the group, which has or will file claims against the “illicit UNITED STATED (sic) OF AMERICA INC. et al” for its prosecution of the ASD Ponzi scheme case brought by the U.S. Secret Service in August 2008.

    “The Secret Service does not comment on or discuss ongoing investigations,” an agency spokesman said this morning.

    A purported “legal opinion” by “Keny” was contained within the email received by ASD members, which was circulated by an ASD member referred to as “Sara.”

    ASD is known to have ties to the so-called “Patriot” and “sovereign” movements. The movements are known to engage in what has been described as “paper terrorism” designed to rattle the government and litigation opponents.

    The U.S. Secret Service seized tens of millions of dollars from the personal bank accounts of ASD President Andy Bowdoin in August 2008, alleging he was at the helm of a massive Ponzi scheme.

    An attorneys’ database at Martindale.com appears to have no listing for a lawyer named “Kenneth Leaming,” “Ken Leaming” or “Keny Leaming.”

    See earlier story.

  • DISTURBING: Email Received By Some ASD Members Suggests They Could Be Sued For Participating In Refund Program; Records Suggest ‘Legal Opinion’ Was Offered By Man Named In Complaints For ‘Unauthorized Practice Of Law’ And Linked To ‘Extremist Group’ By Anti-Defamation League

    In a bizarre and unsettling development, some members of AdSurfDaily who may be planning to file for restitution through the official claims administrator have received a confusing and threatening email from a “group” of ASD members.

    The email, which appears to be a compendium that cobbles together communications from the group and asks ASD members to pass along the information, implies that ASD members who file for restitution through the government-approved process may face legal action from the group, which has or will file claims against the “illicit UNITED STATED (sic) OF AMERICA INC. et al” for its prosecution of the ASD Ponzi scheme case brought by the U.S. Secret Service in August 2008.

    The lawsuit threat appears to be targeted at ASD members who are planning to file a restitution claim through Rust Consulting Inc. of Minneapolis. Rust Consulting is under contract with the government to administer the restitution program through a process known as remission in which ASD members must certify they are crime victims.

    Pasted into the email is a purported “legal opinion” by a person described as “Keny” of “AMERICAN-International Business Law inc. (sic).”

    “Keny” does not appear to be the source of the lawsuit threat. Rather, the email quotes a purported “legal opinion” by “Keny” — and then implies members who file through Rust Consulting may be sued by members of the group. The email asks members not to file for a refund through the official process.

    “Please send me your response(s) and I will manage the feedback timely,” says an email signed “MYHUB.” “Again, we are asking that our Claimants do not engage in the DOJ’s Remission Process, as long you want to maintain being part of our Group Claims whatsoever. If you are indeed wanting to eat on the other side of the fence, you must let us know before you submit anything to the DOJ, without causing us potential harm and further damages. In case you were to fail to notify us, we would have a possible claim against you, and that’s not what you want us to do in the first place.

    “We very much appreciate your understanding in this rather sensitive time of legal dealings,” the email continues. “No worries, we are just getting started to fight for and along with you. If you feel that this email could help some of your friends in ASD that are not part of our Group Claims, we are allowing you to share and forward this email as long it doesn’t end up in Blogs et al., but then again, people need to be informed since they can’t read and or understand the legal language or the meaning of words any longer.”

    Google search results include multiple references to “AMERICAN-INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS LAW INC” and a person referenced as “Keny.”

    One of the references appears on a website operated by Cornell University Law School under a heading of “Legal Services & Lawyers.” The Cornell reference identifies a person named Kenneth Wayne Leaming of AMERICAN-INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS LAW INC. of Spanaway, Wash. The Cornell site notes that correspondence should be sent to the attention of “Keny” and that Kenneth Wayne Leaming practices “Admiralty/Maritime, Business Law, Estate Planning and Native American Law.”

    Records at the Practice of Law Board at the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) say that Kenneth Wayne Leaming, also known as Kenneth Wayne, was accused of the unauthorized practice of law by clients in 2005.

    One client accused Leaming of “actively market[ing] legal services via seminars and the internet” and of providing “legal advice” and preparing “pleadings for many clients,” according to WSBA.

    Another client accused Leaming of contracting with him “to assist him in avoiding an IRS lien on his home” and failing to provide the services.

    On Dec. 20, 2005, WSBA said in a letter to Leaming that his “conduct constitutes the unauthorized practice of law.” The final disposition of the matter was not immediately clear. Also unclear is whether Leaming ever was a licensed attorney or authorized to practice law in any state.

    Separately, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) lists Leaming as a member of an “extremist group” known as “Little Shell Pembina Band of North America.”

    Leaming, according to ADL, is a “self-described ‘recognized international lawyer’ who once served as a deputy sheriff and member of the Civil Rights Task Force, a “sovereign citizen group that has used badges and raid jackets to resemble law enforcement officers.”

    “His CRTF partner, David Carroll Stephenson, was ordered by a federal court in March 2004 to stop promoting an alleged tax scam that allowed people to avoid an estimated $43 million in federal income taxes,” according to ADL.

    The identity of “MYHUB” was unclear in the email received by ASD members. Portions of the email were pieced together by a sender known as “Sara.” A person named Sara Mattoon once served as ASD’s official spokeswoman and is referenced in a court filing by the Secret Service in 2009.

    In the email, “Sara” referenced remarks attributed to “Keny” as a “legal opinion about why it may be unwise for you to fill out the [Rust Consulting] form, aside from it working against ASD.”

    The “Sara” email then reproduces the “MYHUB” email and the purported “legal opinion” by “Keny.”

    The purported legal opinion describes the Rust Consulting website, which is listed in court documents as the official site for ASD victims, as “almost exclusively a propaganda site to get the viewer to ‘believe’ the gov’t LIE that advertising via network marketing on the internet is somehow bad business and fraudulent, and solicit false testimony from the viewer based on the false information!”

    In yet-another email received by ASD members, a fellow member referenced as “Robert” also referred to the claims program administered by Rust Consulting. The email from “Robert” includes an unattributed opinion, meaning the identity of the person who offered the opinion is unclear.

    “If members feel it absolutely necessary to complete the remission form now instead of waiting a little longer for the legal process to be completed then they may want to write on a separate piece of paper and have it notarized saying that they were not an investor,” according to the opinion contained within the email from “Robert.”

    Members also should swear that “they purchased advertising for their website and that they were happy with their purchase,” according to the unattributed opinion circulated by “Robert.”

    “The govt is trying to trick people into saying it was an investment,” the opinion claimed.

    Separately, an apparent ASD member known as MMG7 who posts on the MoneyMakerGroup Ponzi forum left a scathing missive yesterday in an ASD thread at the forum.

    “The same people who abused their power, under the color of law, back in August of 2008 and basically *shut down* the company without due process are up to yet additional tactics to *CREATE VICTIMS* out of thin air,” the post read in part.

    “The general consensus is that once they can *create victims* they can then turn around and use it against ASD or even YOU.

    “It is VERY HEALTHY to question their motives. Remember, these are the same people that ruined the lives of 100,000+ people in the blink of an eye without so much as having to provide an explanation for their actions.

    “Could it be they thought ASD would roll over and play dead so they could put a feather in their cap and claim victory? Not to mention being able to keep a hefty sum of members monetary property.”

    The MoneyMakerGroup forum is referenced in a May filing by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service as a place from which Ponzi schemes are promoted. The filing accused an entity known as Pathway To Prosperity of conducting an international Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 40,000 investors across the globe.

    MMG7 did not explain in his post how he arrived at the conclusion that ASD was denied due process in a court case that has featured more than 175 filings and a hearing called at ASD’s request to free seized money.

    ASD’s request was denied in November 2008 because it did not demonstrate at the hearing it requested to prove its legitimacy that it was operating lawfully and was not a Ponzi scheme, according to court records.

    ASD President Andy Bowdoin later met with federal prosecutors over a period of at least four days. Bowdoin, according to court filings, signed a proffer letter and acknowledged the government’s material allegations in the case were all true.

    Although Bowdoin initially contested the forfeiture of tens of millions of dollars seized in the case, he submitted to it in January 2009. By the end of February 2009, however, Bowdoin reentered the case, acting as his own attorney and seeking to reassert his claims to the money. Months of legal wrangling followed, and Bowdoin was forced to hire new attorneys. A federal judge ruled last fall that Bowdoin would not be permitted to reenter the case, and an order of forfeiture was signed in January 2010.

    Nor did MMG7 explain how he had arrived at his conclusion that the government “ruined the lives of 100,000+ people in the blink of an eye without so much as having to provide an explanation for their actions.”

    Court records plainly show that that the government explained in considerable detail to at least two federal judges why it sought the authority to seize tens of millions of dollars contained in the personal bank accounts of Bowdoin, who was accused of swindling investors in an Alabama securities caper in the 1990s. Moroever, the government has said all along that it intended to establish a restitution pool from the assets seized in the case.

    The implementation of both the pool and the restitution/remission process were delayed by appeals filed by Bowdoin.

    Bowdoin was sentenced to prison in the Alabama case, but avoided jail time by agreeing to make restitution, according to records.

    Clarence Busby, his business partner in the AdSurfDaily/Golden Panda Ad Builder venture, also swindled investors in a separate securities scheme in the 1990s, according to the SEC.

    At the same time, MMG7 did not explain how he arrived at his conclusion that the government “shut down” ASD. Records show that ASD was permitted to continue to display advertising after the seizure, but that Bowdoin chose not to do so.

    Prosecutors say that, despite ASD’s claims to a federal judge that it had no money to operate, the company had $1 million in an account under a “different name” on the island nation of Antigua.

    Records show that Bowdoin did not reveal the existence of the Antigua money to members until after ASD had asked the court for emergency cash to pay its rent and webhosting bill.

    U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer, whom Bowdoin and another member later tried to have removed from hearing the case, refused to release funds to ASD.