Three Militia Men Arrested In Alleged Bomb Plot Against Kansas Mosque

By Stephen Gossett in News on Oct 14, 2016 10:09PM

Getty Images / Photo: Chip Somodevilla

Three members of a militia were arrested on Friday for allegedly plotting to attack a mosque and an apartment complex in Garden City, Kansas, with the intent of targeting Somoli refugees. According to the Washington Post, the apartment building housed some 120 residents.

Buzzfeed reported, "The three men, members of a group calling themselves 'The Crusaders,' wanted to detonate four parked vehicles filled with explosives outside the apartment complex in Garden City."

The suspects were identified as Curtis Allen, 49, Gavin Wright, 49, and Patrick Eugene Stein, 47, of Kansas. They had been planning the attack for several months, Beall is quoted as saying. Federal agents began investigating the group, described as “an anti-government hate group,” in February. The men allegedly built a stockpile of arms and ammunition and planned to publish a manifesto after they carried out the attacks, according CBS Wichita.

The car-bomb attack was intended to be triggered after the election in order to “wake people up," according to acting US Attorney Tom Beall.

The Washington Post noted, "Garden City is home to a Tyson Foods beef slaughterhouse that has drawn a diverse immigrant population to the area."