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Thread: Ian Benjamin Rogers, (44) Arrested on Illegal Weapons charges

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    Ian Benjamin Rogers, (44) Arrested on Illegal Weapons charges

    https://www.pressdemocrat.com/articl...-sher/?sba=AAS

    A Napa businessman has been jailed with bail set at $5 million after sheriff?s deputies located a massive cache of weapons and explosives at his home and business, including gunpowder and five pipe bombs, the sheriff?s office said Saturday.

    Ian Benjamin Rogers, 44, was booked on five felony illegal weapons charges and one misdemeanor charge Friday, after deputies searched the two locations on a warrant, according to a news release. His bail is set at $5 million.

    ?This is gonna be one that gets a lot of attention, for sure,? said Henry Wofford, public information officer for the Napa County Sheriff?s Office.

    Wofford said the department could not say Saturday evening if Rogers had a plan to use the massive cache of weapons, as their investigation is still in its early stages.

    ?We don?t want to cause any unnecessary panic, but because we?re in a very early phase of this investigation, we don?t want to rule out anything at this point,? he said.

    Investigators with the sheriff?s office secured search warrants after receiving an anonymous tip that Rogers possessed illegal guns, Wofford said. They searched both his Napa home and his business, British Auto Repair of the Napa Valley, according to Rogers? social media.

    Investigators found five pipe bombs inside a safe at the auto repair business, the release said. A bomb squad with the sheriff?s office disabled the weapons.

    The Napa Valley Register, whose newsroom is located near Rogers? business, reported Saturday that authorities blocked access to the driveway to British Auto Repair, which is on Action Avenue in Napa, while disarming the weapons. A section of the Napa Valley Vine Trail was also temporarily closed.

    Between Rogers? home and business, investigators located several pounds of gunpowder, more than 15,000 rounds of ammunition and approximately 8 to 10 illegal guns, out of a stash that numbered more than 50, Wofford said.

    ?We realize something of this nature is extremely alarming and significant,? he said. The sheriff?s office has notified both the FBI and California Highway Patrol about its evidence.

    ?There will be more to the story,? Wofford said.

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    https://ktla.com/news/california/nap...geting-newsom/

    A Napa man charged with stockpiling weapons, including pipe bombs, may have been targeting California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

    In this photo released Jan. 16, 2021, by the Napa County Sheriff's Office shows Ian Rogers. (Napa County Sheriff's Office via AP)
    In this photo released Jan. 16, 2021, by the Napa County Sheriff’s Office shows Ian Rogers. (Napa County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
    Ian Rogers, 44, was arrested this month on state illegal firearm charges after sheriff’s deputies and federal agents found weapons and explosives at his home and auto repair shop, authorities said. He’s being held in lieu of $5 million bail. Federal prosecutors have now charged him with unlawful possession of unregistered destructive devices, according to court records.

    He also may have been targeting the San Francisco Bay Area headquarters of social media giants Twitter and Facebook, the Los Angeles Times reported.

    Officials found a cache of 49 weapons that included at least eight illegal guns, thousands of rounds of ammunition, five pipe bombs and materials to make more, plus manuals like “The Anarchist Cookbook,” “U.S. Army Improvised Munitions Handbook” and “Homemade C-4 A Recipe for Survival.” He also had a bumper sticker associated with anti-government militia the Three Percenters on his vehicle, prosecutors said.

    “We draw a bright line between lawlessness and our constitutional freedoms. We will prosecute illegal weapons stockpiles regardless of the motivation of the offender,” U.S. Attorney David Anderson for the Northern District of California said in a statement.

    Investigators secured search warrants after receiving an anonymous tip that Rogers possessed illegal guns, official said.

    Rogers’ attorney, Jess Raphael, said Rogers told investigators he explodes the pipe bombs for fun, as if they were larger firecrackers, when he goes camping.

    Investigators “stacked tires and exploded them inside some tires and they apparently didn’t even have the capacity to shrink tires,” Raphael said.

    He said the anonymous tip came from a disgruntled employee Rogers had fired and who first contacted the FBI in September, but the bureau didn’t pursue the case. In October, that employee contacted the Napa County Sheriff’s Office, which reached out to the FBI, and the bureau again said there was no connection to terrorism, Raphael said.

    But that changed after the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, the attorney said. Raphael, who is representing Rogers in the state charges, said his client has no connection to the riot.

    “Mr. Rogers is not a member of any militia, or any hate group. He doesn’t espouse extremist views, even the tipster endorsed that when he was interviewed by law enforcement,” Raphael added.

    Rogers is a supporter of former President Donald Trump and once attended a barbecue hosted by the Three Percenters but is not a member of the group, Raphael said.

    According to an FBI affidavit in the case, text messages recovered from Roger’s phone showed he believed Trump won the election and talked about attacking Democrats and Twitter, which has suspended Trump’s account.

    “We can attack Twitter and democrats easy right now,” said part of a Jan. 10 text, according to officials.

    Raphael called it “drunken bluster.”

    “He just got kind of swept up with all of the emotion and the hysteria about President Trump, and the incidents that happened on January 6,” the attorney said.

    Rogers will plead not guilty on the 28 state felony charges at a hearing Friday in Napa County Superior Court, Raphael said.

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    https://www.ktvu.com/news/napa-man-c...nal-pipe-bombs

    NAPA, Calif. (BCN) - A Napa County man was charged Tuesday with violations of federal weapons laws after investigators discovered a trove of pipe bombs and firearms at his home and business.

    Ian Benjamin Rogers, 44, was found in possession of five pipe bombs, 49 firearms, and two dozen ammunition boxes containing thousands of rounds, according to an affidavit filed by FBI Special Agent Stephanie Minor. Investigators also found materials "that could be used to manufacture explosive devices" and a copy of "The Anarchist Cookbook."
    Minor's affidavit stated that she is assigned to the Domestic Terrorism Squad of the FBI's San Francisco Field Office.

    "Several of the firearms, including what appears to be a kit-built replica MG-42 belt-fed machine gun, appear to be capable of firing fully automatic," according to the allegations in the affidavit.

    Investigators recovered text messages from Rogers' phone that allegedly reflect his belief that "Donald Trump won the 2020 presidential election and [Rogers'] intent to attack Democrats and places associated with Democrats in an effort to ensure Trump remained in office."

    The affidavit alleged that Rogers displayed a decal on his website proclaiming his membership in a group referred to as "Three Percenters." Minor said the term is associated with "people who ascribe to extreme anti-government, pro-gun beliefs ... a reference to the belief that only three percent of American colonists fought against the British in the American Revolution."

    The affidavit contained a photo of a so-called "White Privilege Card" found by investigators that stated "Trumps Everything." The cardholder's name is shown to be "Scott Free."

    The affidavit quoted Jan. 10 text messages recovered from Rogers' phone in which he allegedly texted, "I hope 45 goes to war if he doesn't I will," "I want to blow up a democrat building bad," and "The democrats need to pay."

    Minor stated that based on her investigation and training, those texts and others evidenced "Rogers' belief that Trump ("45") actually won the presidential election and should 'go to war' to ensure he remained in power."

    She believes that the messages show "Rogers' intent to engage in acts of violence himself locally if there was not an organized 'war' to prevent Joe Biden from assuming the presidency."

    Citing texts that refer to a "sac office first target" and to "bird and face," the agent alleged that Rogers meant "their first target should be the offices of California Governor Gavin Newsom in Sacramento" and that the offices of Twitter ("bird") and Facebook ("face") would be next because they locked Trump's accounts to prevent him from sending messages on those platforms.

    The affidavit reports that a bomb technician associated with the Napa County Sheriff's Office examined the seized pipe bombs and preliminarily determined them to be "fully operational".

    Rogers was arrested Jan. 15 and according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Francisco, he is being "held in state custody in lieu of a $5 million bail as he awaits a preliminary hearing."

    The weapons offenses carry a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a $10,000 fine, according to the federal complaint.

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    https://ktla.com/news/california/vio...investigation/

    Law enforcement officials are investigating escalating threats of death and violence against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, his family and the wineries, shops and other businesses he founded.

    A voicemail and emails provided to the Sacramento Bee contained graphic abusive language about Newsom, violent sexual threats against his wife and a reference to his children. The newspaper said one communication included a threat to burn down one of the wineries owned by PlumpJack Group, the hospitality company Newsom founded in 1992, with patrons inside.

    Brian Ferguson, a spokesman for Newsom’s Office of Emergency Services, said he couldn’t answer specific questions about the threats but confirmed that law enforcement agencies are investigating.

    “We can confirm that we are aware of these threats,” Ferguson wrote in a statement. “Any threats against elected officials, including public or private property, are taken seriously and closely monitored by the appropriate local, state or federal law enforcement.”

    The Democratic governor is the subject of a recall effort pushed by political foes angered over his aggressive approach to the coronavirus outbreak. Newsom received wide praise when he issued the nation’s first statewide stay-at-home order last spring, but there has been growing public unrest over subsequent health orders that closed schools and businesses, and investigations continue into a massive unemployment benefits fraud scandal.

    False rumors spread online that Newsom has given coronavirus aid money to his own businesses. In fact, PlumpJack Group received about $2.8 million in loans through the Paycheck Protection Program administered by the federal government, not California.

    Newsom placed all of his businesses in a blind trust when he took office to reduce potential conflicts of interest. The trust legally bars him from being involved in the businesses’ day-to-day operations or participating in buy-and-sell decisions.

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