FBI Foils Va. 'Race War' Plot to Bomb Black Churches

Virginia white supremacists tried to buy weapons from undercover agent: FBI
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 11, 2015 9:50 AM CST
FBI Foils Va. 'Race War' Plot to Bomb Black Churches
This compilation photo shows, from left, Ronald Beasley Chaney Jr.; Ronald B. Chaney III; Robert C. Doyle; and Charles D. Halderman.   (FBI)

The FBI says two white supremacists in Virginia tried to buy weapons from an undercover agent so they could carry out mass shootings and bombings at black churches and synagogues. Authorities say Robert C. Doyle, 34, and Ronald B. Chaney III, 33—whom Buzzfeed identifies as belonging to a white supremacist version of the pagan religion Asatru—were first put under surveillance in September when Doyle hosted a meeting to discuss the scheme as well as killing an Ok gun store owner in Oklahoma. Doyle then ordered two firearms, a silencer, and explosives from an undercover agent on Oct. 25, the FBI says. A criminal complaint notes Chaney questioned whether the deal was a "Fed operation ... (to) infiltrate ... our (expletive) people," but he went through with a plan to pay for the weapons on Sunday, reports ABC News. He and Doyle were then arrested.

Doyle reportedly told agents that the weapons were for Chaney, though agents say 30 rounds of ammunition for an ordered .45 caliber pistol were found in Doyle's vehicle, reports CNN. Another man who allegedly attended the September meeting, Charles Halderman, has been charged with conspiracy to commit a robbery after speaking with Doyle about a plan to murder a local jeweler and rob an armored truck, the FBI says, per WTVR. The complaint notes the men planned to use the stolen funds to "purchase land, stockpile weapons, and train for the coming race war." Doyle and Chaney are each charged with conspiracy to possess firearms as felons, though a legal expert says "this one charge is just the tip of the iceberg." Chaney's mother and father are also charged with firearms and drug charges, reports the Richmond Times-Dispatch. (More FBI stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X