AZ Man Sentenced For Neo-Nazi Threats In Seattle

SEATTLE — A federal judge in Seattle on Wednesday sentenced the first of four members of a neo-Nazi group arrested earlier in the year on suspicion of making threats against journalists and advocates for minority populations.

Johnny Roman Garza, 21, of Queen Creek pleaded guilty in September and will serve 16 months in federal prison.

The Joint Terrorism Task Force coordinated simultaneous arrests in four states, including Washington, in February after flyers with nazi imagery were mailed or dropped off at several homes.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, targets included three residents in Seattle, Edmonds and Mercer Island. One of the recipients was KING 5 investigative reporter Chris Ingalls, who produced several pieces on the group, Atomwaffen Division, the year before. Ingalls had visited the Arlington home of one of the defendants, Kaleb Cole, in October 2019 after law enforcement seized several guns from his home. Cole's trial is scheduled to begin in March 2021.

At the sentencing hearing for Garza on Wednesday, Judge John C. Coughenour acknowledged progress he had made since his arrest to "educate himself about the minority groups he targeted with hate and work to undo some of the harm he inflicted." However, Coughenour concluded the actions still necessitated prison time because of "the severity of this conduct and the horrible impact it had on people that are important in our society."

Garza told the judge he joined the group during a time of "darkness and isolation" and that he "fell in with the worst crowd you could fall in with." He said the fallout of his actions also changed him as a person — a sentiment echoed in statements filed with the court by Garza's aunt and a longtime friend.

According to federal prosecutors, Garza pleaded guilty in early September on charges including conspiracy mail threatening communications, stalking and interference with federally protected activities.

In a plea agreement, the U.S. Attorney's Office said Garza admitted to conspiring with the other defendants using an encrypted chat group to identify where journalists and advocates lived and primarily targeted those who were Jewish or people of color.

The criminal complaint filed in February included copies of three mailers, including a flyer depicting a man with a press badge that included the text "two can play at this game" and "death to pigs." A flyer that prosecutors said Garza placed in the window of a prominent Jewish journalist in January showed a burning house and was captioned "your actions have consequences," "our patience has its limits," and "you have been visited by your local nazis."

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the three other defendants' cases will move forward in early 2021. Taylor Ashley Parker-Dipeppe, 21, of Tampa, Florida, also pleaded guilty in September and is scheduled for sentencing in February. A trial for the two men charged as leaders of the conspiracy will begin in March: Kaleb Cole, 24, of Montgomery, Texas, and Cameron Brandon Shea, 24, of Redmond, Washington.

Lucas Combos contributed to this story in Washington.