3 More Members Of White Nationalist Group Arrested In Connection With Political Rally Riots
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — The FBI says they have arrested three more members of a Southern California-based white nationalist group for their roles in riots that broke out at political rallies in California and Charlottesville, Va., while a fourth named in a criminal complaint remains at large.
Robert Rundo, whom the FBI identified as the co-founder and leader of the Rise Above Movement, or RAM, was arrested Sunday at Los Angeles International Airport. Two other members – Robert Boman of Torrance and Tyler Laube of Redondo Beach, were arrested Wednesday morning.
Rundo, who is from Huntington Beach, appeared in federal court in downtown Los Angeles Wednesday morning and was ordered to remain in jail without bail. Laube and Bowman are expected to make their first appearance in federal court Wednesday afternoon.
A criminal complaint filed in federal court accuses Rundo, Boman, Laube and a fourth member, Aaron Eason of Anza, with organizing, promoting, encouraging and participating in riots.
Eason remains at large, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
"Throughout 2017, the defendants and other RAM members traveled to political rallies, including in Huntington Beach, California, on March 25, 2017, Berkeley, California, on April 15, 2017, San Bernardino, California, on June 20, 2017, and Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 11-12, 2017, " according to a federal affidavit in support of an arrest warrant. "RAM members violently attacked and assaulted counter-protesters at each of these events."
The latest arrests come on the heels of the arrests and indictments of four other members of RAM -- three of whom are residents of South Bay communities -- for allegedly inciting the deadly riot in Charlottesville, Virginia, last year.
Those four defendants -- Benjamin Drake Daley, 25, of Redondo Beach, Thomas Walter Gillen, 24, of Redondo Beach, Michael Paul Miselis, 29, of Lawndale, and Cole Evan White, 24, of Clayton, California -- were arrested on federal criminal complaints in the early morning hours of Oct. 2.
They were indicted about a week later in Virginia on one count each of conspiracy to violate the federal riots act and traveling across state lines to participate in or incite a riot.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
