An FBI agent specializing in domestic terrorism said Ian Benjamin Rogers sent out a series of text messages threatening Gov. Gavin Newsom, Democrats and social media organizations the week before he was arrested for possessing an arsenal of weaponry at his Napa home and business.
The affidavit is the first time that law enforcement has presented evidence that Rogers wasnât just obsessed with weaponry, but considered âgoing to warâ if Trump had to give up the presidency.
Rogers, 43, believed that Trump had won the presidential election and should not leave office, Special Agent Stephanie Minor wrote in an affidavit supporting federal charges that he had possessed five pipe bombs at his business, British Auto Repair of the Napa Valley.
Napa man arrested with explosives may have been targeting Newsom, authorities say [Los Angeles Times]
A suspected far-right extremist and radicalized supporter of former President Trump facing federal explosives charges may have been targeting California Gov. Gavin Newsom and the San Francisco Bay Area headquarters of social media giants Twitter and Facebook, according to the FBI.
Federal prosecutors charged Ian Benjamin Rogers, 43, of Napa County, for possessing five homemade pipe bombs that investigators found when they searched his home and auto repair business on Jan. 15. They also confiscated additional bomb-making material along with 49 firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition.
A theft arrest at the American Canyon Walmart Friday turned into a drug investigation, the Napa Special Investigations Bureau reported Monday.
Siddhartha Suri, 33, of Fremont was arrested by American Canyon Police in the Walmart parking lot after a reported theft, the bureau said.Â
Suri had several outstanding warrants for possessing narcotics for sale, as well as a warrant issued by the U.S. Marshall s Office for selling dangerous drugs, NSIB reported.
Police searched his vehicle and found Fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and Xanax packaged for sale, the agency said in a news release. Suri also had a large amount of cash in his possession, officers said.