Latest news with #NewMexicoRepublicanParty
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Man charged in Tesla, GOP arson attacks ordered to remain in custody pending trial
Apr. 16—A U.S. magistrate judge on Wednesday ordered Jamison Wagner, 40, to remain in custody while awaiting trial on federal charges alleging he carried out arson attacks against a Tesla dealership and New Mexico Republican Party office. Also on Wednesday, an FBI agent revealed that DNA evidence obtained from a shattered liquor bottle found at the GOP office led to Wagner's arrest this week. U.S. Magistrate Judge John Robbenhaar said he found it difficult to order pretrial detention for a man with no criminal history, strong family ties in Albuquerque and a steady job at Intel. Robbenhaar pointed to both the violent nature of the attacks and writings found at Wagner's home that allegedly described plans for building bombs as his reasons for ordering Wagner's detention. The writings, contained in a black notebook found at Wagner's home, "talk about using violence against the regime," Robbenhaar said following a three-hour hearing in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque. "I have to say, these charges rung a bell," Robbenhaar said. "This does fall under the rubric of domestic terrorism." Wagner is charged with two federal counts of arson of a building or vehicle used in interstate commerce. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each count, prosecutors said. Wagner's attorney, Noah Gelb, told the judge that the charges Wagner faces, if true, are "completely aberrant" given his past behavior. Wagner moved to Albuquerque as a teenager, earned a master's degree in electrical engineering at the University of New Mexico and has worked for three years at Intel, Gelb said. Gelb also said he found it "troubling" that "the sole pitch for detention is the present case." He asked the judge to allow Wagner to remain in home detention while awaiting trial. "We have no evidence to suggest dangerousness or risk of flight, at all," Gelb said. Wagner, who was cuffed and shackled and wearing a red-and-white inmate uniform, offered to speak at the hearing but was advised by the judge not to make any statements. Prosecutors pointed to the contents of the notebook found in Wagner's home to argue that Wagner has an "ideological disdain" for the U.S. government and had been planning additional attacks. "In his garage, he was attempting to distill ammonium nitrate," which can be used to build powerful bombs, Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Mote told the judge. "It appears he was intending further acts of violence." William Yu, an FBI agent and the prosecution's only witness Wednesday, testified that DNA evidence found at the scene of a March 30 arson attack at the New Mexico Republican Party headquarters led to Wagner's identification as a suspect. "I was told the DNA was a match to a person," Yu testified. "It was a known person" but not Wagner, he said. FBI agents then tracked social media accounts of the person, who was not identified, and found a link to Wagner, Yu said. Wagner became the prime suspect when investigators learned that he owned a 2015 Hyundai Accent observed in surveillance video near the GOP headquarters, he said. According to a criminal complaint, investigators found shattered bottles that they allege were used as incendiary devices to set a fire at the Republican Party office in the 5100 block of San Francisco NE. Some of the shattered glass was identified as a blue bottle of Bombay Sapphire Gin, the complaint said. Yu testified that the DNA evidence obtained from the glass led to social media surveillance that ultimately led to Wagner's arrest on Monday. Investigators also observed similarities between the attack on GOP headquarters and a Feb. 9 attack on a Tesla dealership in Bernalillo, Yu said. The criminal complaint said that the lid of a Smucker's peanut butter container found at GOP headquarters was marked with a handwritten "H" or "I" similar to a bottle found inside a Tesla Model Y following the Feb. 9 attack. FBI agents executed a search warrant at Wagner's Northwest Albuquerque residence on April 12 where they found a cardboard box containing eight assembled incendiary devices, Yu testified. Investigators also found a black notebook that appeared to contain instructions for building hand-thrown incendiary devices commonly known as Molotov cocktails, Yu testified. Other notes contained instructions on how to extract ammonium nitrate from fertilizer, Yu said. The search also found evidence that Wagner had made an unsuccessful attempt to extract ammonium nitrate from a commercial fertilizer, he said. Mote argued that Wagner's attempt to extract ammonium nitrate combined with written notes indicates his intent to "counter a brutal regime of oppressors." The case has attracted national media attention and comments from Attorney General Pamela Bondi, who warned that "those taking part in this ongoing wave of political violence" will be arrested and prosecuted. The affidavit supporting Wagner's arrest warrant was prepared by federal agents with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The attack on the Tesla showroom occurred shortly after 3 a.m. on Feb. 9, where investigators found two Tesla Model Y vehicles on fire outside the showroom, which is located on Santa Ana Pueblo property. ATF investigators said the fires were started by a glass container containing a fluid described as "improvised napalm material." Investigators also found graffiti scrawled on the building and up to six vehicles with messages including "Die Elon," "Tesla Nazi Inc." and "Die Tesla Nazi." In the March 30 attack at the GOP office, Albuquerque Fire Rescue responded at 5:55 a.m. and found the door and entry area on fire. They also found graffiti on the side of the building that read, "ICE=KKK," according to the criminal complaint. Yu testified that federal agents found a stencil in Wagner's home similar to the graffiti found at the GOP office.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fire at New Mexico GOP headquarters under investigation as arson
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A fire that damaged the entryway to the New Mexico Republican Party headquarters in Albuquerque is being investigated as arson, a fire official said Monday. No suspect has been named in the Sunday morning blaze that's under investigation by local authorities, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Incendiary materials were found on the scene, according to an ATF spokesperson. Spray paint on the side of the building read 'ICE=KKK,' said Lt. Jason Fejer with Albuquerque Fire Rescue. Fejer said federal officials were taking over the arson investigation. Republican leaders described the fire as a deliberate attack. The building had extensive smoke damage, which Republican party spokesperson Ash Soular said left the offices uninhabitable. Surveillance video from the inside the building captured images of the fire, Soular said. She declined Monday morning to give further details and said law enforcement asked the party not to release the video or discuss its contents in detail. State Republican leaders planned a news conference Monday afternoon to address the fire and other damage. The weekend fire followed vandalism across the U.S. in recent weeks targeting dealerships for Tesla, the electric car company owned by Elon Musk, who is leading Republican President Donald Trump's efforts to slash the federal workforce. Trump has also sought to ramp up deportation efforts against people living in the country illegally, led by agents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller, a Democrat, said in response to the GOP headquarters fire that 'politically motivated crimes of any kind are unacceptable.'
Associated Press
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Fire at New Mexico GOP headquarters under investigation as arson
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A fire that damaged the entryway to the New Mexico Republican Party headquarters in Albuquerque is being investigated as arson, a fire official said Monday. No suspect has been named in the Sunday morning blaze that's under investigation by local authorities, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Incendiary materials were found on the scene, according to an ATF spokesperson. Spray paint on the side of the building read 'ICE=KKK,' said Lt. Jason Fejer with Albuquerque Fire Rescue. Fejer said federal officials were taking over the arson investigation. Republican leaders described the fire as a deliberate attack. The building had extensive smoke damage, which Republican party spokesperson Ash Soular said left the offices uninhabitable. Surveillance video from the inside the building captured images of the fire, Soular said. She declined Monday morning to give further details and said law enforcement asked the party not to release the video or discuss its contents in detail. The weekend fire followed vandalism across the U.S. in recent weeks targeting dealerships for Tesla, the electric car company owned by Elon Musk, who is leading Republican President Donald Trump's efforts to slash the federal workforce. Trump has also sought to ramp up deportation efforts against people living in the country illegally, led by agents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller, a Democrat, said in response to the GOP headquarters fire that 'politically motivated crimes of any kind are unacceptable.'
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New Mexico Republican Party headquarters targeted in suspected arson attack, officials say
The New Mexico Republican Party headquarters was targeted in a suspected arson attack on Sunday, according to party officials. At approximately 5:56 a.m. on Sunday, Albuquerque Fire Rescue was dispatched to the headquarters for a reported structure fire, officials said. The flames were brought under control within five minutes of their arrival and there were no reported injuries, fire rescue said. The structure suffered "damage to the front entryway and smoke damage throughout the building," fire rescue said. The words "ICE=KKK" were also spray-painted on the building, officials said. The Republican Party of New Mexico said the incident was a "deliberate act of arson." "This horrific attack, fueled by hatred and intolerance, is a direct assault on our values, freedoms and our right to political expression," party officials said in a statement on Sunday. MORE: Man arrested in Las Vegas Tesla arson facing federal charges Party officials said this is not an isolated incident, claiming it is part of a "disturbing pattern of politically motivated violence that has plagued our country -- fueled in part by the silence and implicit encouragement from progressive leaders who refuse to condemn these acts." Republican Party of New Mexico Chairwoman Amy Barela said those who "resort to violence to undermine our state and nation must be held accountable." "The Republican Party of New Mexico will not be silenced," Barela said in a statement. "We will emerge from this stronger, more united and more determined to fight for the people of New Mexico and the future of our country." The Democratic Party of New Mexico said on X that it also "condemns the vandalism of the @NewMexicoGOP office as strongly as possible." "We firmly maintain that this sort of act has absolutely no place in our Democracy, & that peaceful discourse & organization are the only ways to approach political differences in our country," the party wrote. "We hope whoever is responsible is found and held accountable." New Mexico Democratic Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez added, "Political violence is unacceptable, including the arson attack on New Mexico's GOP headquarters. The perpetrators must be held accountable. Every American should be able to freely and safely participate in our democracy." MORE: Documents appear to show how Trump admin identifies Venezuelan gang members: ACLU Leticia Muñoz, the executive director of the State Republican Party of New Mexico, said she is "thankful to first responders and law enforcement who saved our office from burning to the ground." "My resolve is even stronger today to continue to 'FIGHT' for our state," Muñoz said in a statement. Albuquerque Fire Rescue is working with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to investigate this incident, officials said. New Mexico Republican Party headquarters targeted in suspected arson attack, officials say originally appeared on
The Independent
30-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Authorities investigate fire that damaged entryway to New Mexico GOP headquarters
Federal authorities are investigating an early morning fire on Sunday that damaged the entryway to the headquarters of the Republican Party of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Firefighters responded to the fire just before 6 a.m. and brought it under control within about five minutes, according to Lt. Jason Fejer with Albuquerque Fire Rescue. The building was unoccupied and no one was injured. But the blaze badly burned the entrance and caused extensive smoke damage throughout the office, where three people work full time, according to Fejer and Republican party representatives. A photo provided by GOP representatives showed the charred entrance of the building with wood and pieces of burned insulation scattered on the ground. A broken and burned door was set to one side. The GOP office's security system detected the fire, said New Mexico Republican Party Chair Amy Barela. She credited firefighters with quickly extinguishing the flames and preventing the fire from spreading. Barela said GOP representatives also found spray paint on the side of the building about 50 feet (15 meters) from the entrance, saying 'ICE=KKK'. Agents from the FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were on scene investigating, according to Fejer and the Albuquerque Police Department. Representatives of the federal agencies did not immediately respond to requests for more information.
