An avowed white nationalist who attended the infamous 2017 Charlottesville rally was arrested over the weekend for allegedly making threats online to shoot up a Jewish community center in New Middleton, Ohio, ABC News reported.
The FBI raided the home of James Reardon, 20, on Friday and found a stockpile of weapons that included dozens of rounds of ammunition, several semi-automatic weapons and protective gear like a gas mask and bulletproof vest, according to multiple reports. Police also found white nationalist and anti-Semitic imagery in his home.
Reardon was initially flagged by authorities last month when he posted a video on Instagram that showed a man shooting a semi-automatic rifle. Sirens and screams were heard in the background of the video, according to ABC News and Reardon tagged Jewish Community Center of Youngston in the Instagram post.
“That kicked off an intense investigation, a very rapidly evolving investigation, because of the way the world is,” New Middletown Police Chief Vince D’Egidio told a local ABC affiliate.
Reardon was arrested and hit with state charges of telecommunications harassment and aggravated menacing. He is being held in the Mahoning County Jail on $250,000 bond and had a courting hearing Monday morning during which he pleaded not guilty. If Reardon posts his bail he will be released to house arrest with strict conditions: he can’t use social media, possess firearms or go within 500 feet of Jewish synagogues or affiliated community centers, according to ABC News.
