According to San Fransisco Chronicles
A suspected extremist who carried a “white privilege” mock credit card has been charged with possessing pipe bombs and accused of threatening to bomb Democrats, the state Capitol and social media companies, according to court records.
Ian Benjamin Rogers, 44, of Napa was arrested Jan. 15 and charged in federal court on Tuesday. From Rogers’ home and business, officers seized 49 firearms; five pipe bombs; materials used to manufacture destructive devices, including black powder, pipes, endcaps and bomb-making manuals; and two dozen ammunition boxes containing thousands of rounds of ammunition, authorities said. Among the arsenal, they said, he had a replica MG-42, a weapon used by Nazis during World War II.
Investigators said Rogers told them he had the bombs for entertainment, but the FBI special agent probing his case said she found text messages making threats, including many in the days following the Capitol siege in Washington earlier this month.
“We allege that Ian Benjamin Rogers possessed homemade pipe bombs and the materials to make more,” U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson said in a statement. “We draw a bright line between lawlessness and our constitutional freedoms. We will prosecute illegal weapon
Jess Raphael, Rogers’ attorney, said his client was full of “bluster and bandwagoning” following the Jan. 6 Capitol siege and had an “alcohol problem,” but was not a danger.
“He’s a real adherent of President Trump. He’s a true believer,” Raphael said in a phone interview. “When President Trump says they stole the election, he says they stole the election. Basically, whatever the president said, he parroted.
Investigators found a sticker associated with the “far-right extremist group” “Three Percenters,” a group who “ascribe to “extreme anti-government, pro-gun beliefs,” according to the FBI probable cause statement. The reference is to the belief that only 3% of American colonists fought against the British during the American Revolution.
Raphael said Rogers went to one Three Percenters barbecue, but “was not a member or anything.” The meeting was held at his shooting club. Rogers was a gun collector, he said, but not in a militia, only participating in a “prepper group” that focused on preparing for end-of-the-world type scenarios.
Investigators also found a “white privilege” mock credit card in Rogers’ possession.
“I know that many extreme anti-government militias are populated by white supremacists,” wrote Stephanie Minor, FBI special agent. “I believe that the statement ‘Trumps Everything’ and the numbers “0045” repeated four times (to make it look like a credit card number), are references to Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States.”
She said the timing of alarming text messages found on Rogers’ cell phone also indicated that he believed Trump won the 2020 presidential election and that he had an intent to attack Democrats and buildings associated with Democrats to keep Trump in power.
On Jan. 10, four days after the Capitol attack, Rogers texted a friend: “We can attack Twitter or the democrats you pick” and “I think we can attack either easily.” The other unidentified individual wrote back, “Let’s go after Soros,” referencing George Soros.
Rogers said that would require a “road trip,” whereas, “We can attack Twitter and democrats easy right now burn they’re (sic) shit down.”
On Jan. 11, Rogers texted the same person: “I want to blow up a democrat building bad … The democrats need to pay.”
He again referenced the presidential election.
“I hope 45 goes to war if he doesn’t I will,” Rogers texted.
Rogers continued on his texts, according to court records: “I’m thinking sac office first target … Then maybe bird and face offices.”
“Minor wrote that she believed the Napa man was referring to the offices of Gov. Gavin Newsom in Sacramento and Twitter (“bird”) and Facebook (“face”), since Trump had been removed from both social media platforms”.
At Rogers’ business, British Auto Repair of the Napa Valley, investigators said they found a large gun safe, along with suspicious literature, including “The Anarchist Cookbook,” a U.S. Army Improvised Munitions Handbook, “Homemade C-4: A Recipe for Survival,” the U.S. Army Special Forces Guide to Unconventional Warfare, and a U.S. Army Guerrilla Warfare Handbook.
A Napa County Sheriff’s Office bomb technician examined the pipe bombs seized from his business and determined they were fully operational.
Rogers is being held in state custody on $5 million bail. No federal court date has been set. If convicted of unlawful possession of an unregistered destructive device, Rogers could face up to 10 years in prison for each charge.