Vallejo man accused of plotting to blow up building in Sacramento
(Photo via Google Street View)
Federal law enforcement announced two arrests this week over a plot to blow up the headquarters of the Democratic Party in Sacramento.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested Jarrod Copeland, 37, of Vallejo and another man, 45-year-old Napa resident Ian Rogers, on suspicion of conspiracy to detonate explosives at the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento.
The men were reportedly upset over former U.S. President Donald Trump’s election loss and began plotting an attack that they hoped would spark a “movement” last November, according to unsealed court records reviewed by Solano NewsNet.
Both men were reportedly in touch with a grassroots militant organization through the Internet as they concocted their conspiracy, federal law enforcement officials said.
“I want to blow up a Democrat building so bad,” Rogers reportedly wrote, according to an indictment unsealed earlier this week. Copeland purportedly responded, “I agree…plan [the] attack.”
Police believe both men intended to attack the Burton building in Sacramento after the inauguration of President Joe Biden on January 20, and that both men planned additional attacks against other targets that were not immediately identified.
Rogers was arrested in January after police in Napa County received a tip that the man had a cache of illegal weapons. A search warrant turned up those weapons, thousands of rounds of ammunition and several pipe bombs.
After the arrest, Copeland allegedly urged members of the online militia to “delete everything” in an effort to cover his tracks. But by then, federal police already had evidence against both men.
Copeland was arrested a short time later in Sacramento. It was unclear why the Vallejo resident was in the capital city at the time of his detention.
Rogers and Copeland face conspiracy charges connected to the plot to destroy a building, possession of unregistered destruction devices, possession of unlicensed machine guns and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Each man could receive up to 20 years in federal prison. Both are presumed innocent of the charges and allegations unless they are convicted.
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