Idaho police get death threats after Patriot Front arrests
STORY: The accused were expected to appear in an Idaho court on Monday for an arraignment following their weekend arrest on suspicion of plotting to violently disrupt an LGBTQ pride event.
The men, arrested on Saturday (June 11) after the U-Haul rental truck they were riding in was pulled over, face misdemeanor charges of conspiracy to riot and possibly additional offenses, according to authorities.
A local resident called authorities after spotting the group of men, all dressed alike with white gaiter-style masks and carrying shields, loading themselves into the truck.
"The information that we had will lead any reasonable officer to assume that there might be criminal activity foot based not only on the 911 call, but the information contained within the call about the weapons that they were loading, the riot gear and things of that nature. We made a command decision to make the stop prior to them getting downtown to prevent the riot from happening. I have no doubt in my mind that had that van stopped at the park or much near the park, that we'd still would've ended up in a riot situation," White said.
White said that he and other members of the police department had received both support from the community and anonymous death threats "merely for doing our jobs."
During a news conference on Monday, White added that authorities had no prior knowledge of the group's plans in Coeur d'Alene, an Idaho Panhandle city about 380 miles (612 km) north of the capital, Boise.
"One lesson we have for our community ... is one concerned citizen can prevent something horrible from happening," White said.
