Thirty-one men affiliated with the white nationalist, far-right Patriot First group were arrested in northwest Idado on Saturday afternoon.
Authorities say the men, wearing balaclavas and masks, were traveling to an LGBTQ Pride event in Coeur d’Alene City Park. The U-haul truck they were traveling in carried materials suggesting they intended to start a riot.
On Sunday, police released the names and mugshots of the arrested men, and the mom of one of them is now speaking out.
All 31 names and mugshots of Patriot Front members who were arrested in Idaho for conspiring to riot during a Pride event 🤡 pic.twitter.com/oWjpYQJVvv
— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) June 13, 2022
Idaho Police Release Mugshots Of Neo-Nazi Group – https://t.co/kA5S7ASNhW pic.twitter.com/HMWVh3qmOw
— JoeMyGod (@JoeMyGod) June 13, 2022
Related: ‘Proud Boys’ try to disrupt drag queen story hour in California
Karen Amsden is the mother of alleged Patriot Front member and Springville, Utah resident Jared Michael Boyce, 27. She spoke exclusively to the Daily Beast, saying she’s now told her son to “Pack your stuff and get out of my house.”
Amsden is a licensed clinical social worker. She says her son has struggled to fill “a void” in his life since his dad left the family years ago and came out as gay.
Amsden said she’s speaking out in the hope that going public will screw up her son’s standing in Patriot First. She’s tried repeatedly to persuade him to turn away from such groups and extremist beliefs.
“I would love to do whatever I can to out him [as a Patriot Front member] so that he can’t be a part of it,” she said. “And that they don’t want him to be a part of their group because his mom has loose lips and a big mouth and he’s never going to get away with anything.”
On being released from custody, Boyce’s mom gave him an ultimatum: Leave the group or pack your bags. Her son told her he couldn’t leave the group, which is when she told him he had to get out of her house.
According to an incident report filed by Coeur d’Alene police about the arrests on Saturday, “Officers believed it likely the intent of these individuals was to incite physical confrontation and cause disorder … all 31 were arrested for conspiracy to riot.”
Related: Dozens of far right extremists squeezed into a U-Haul to go start a riot at Pride
The men came from 11 different states, including Illinois, Arkansas and Virginia. Another of those arrested was Thomas Rousseau, a 23-year-old from Grapevine, Texas, who has been identified as the Patriot Front founder.
Amsden says her son told her that anonymous donors bailed him and other members of the group arrested on Saturday.
Amsden says he informed her, “Don’t believe the media, mom. We were just there because they’re grooming kids.”
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Patriot Front is, “A white nationalist hate group that formed in the aftermath of the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, of August 12, 2017. The organization broke off from Vanguard America (VA), a neo-Nazi group that participated in the chaotic demonstration.”
The group’s manifesto calls for the formation of a white ethnostate. It sees black Americans, Jews and LGBTQ people as enemies, and argues that by protesting and rioting against these groups, it is preserving the ethnic and cultural origins of its members’ white, European ancestors.
Since news of the arrests on Saturday broke, Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White says his department has received over 100 calls, including death threats from rightwing extremists. There have also been threats to publish online the addresses and phone numbers of cops involved with the arrests.
Idaho police said they’ve received death threats since arresting 31 men affiliated with white nationalist group Patriot Front near an annual LGBTQ+ event over the weekend.https://t.co/ZFKA1vukGW
— NBC Out (@NBCOUT) June 13, 2022
Aranos
Just a bunch of self-hating closet cases, either gay or bi.
Harley
Most of them have a serious incel vibe to them. IMHO.
DBMC
No reason to believe they’re latent homosexuals.
jt1990
Paid actors. How else can a bunch of jobless twenty something year old kids afford to travel across the country and protest? The fuel alone right now would cost as much as the car itself!
Den
@”jt1990″, a verifiable fool:
Ah!
Showing once again just how dull you right wingers are. The original article indicates their ages were from the 20’s to the 40’s and there is no indication that any of them were jobless. You have no idea how much money they have or don’t have, but as is typical people like you cannot differentiate between your imagination and reality.
Just go away, nobody here needs heterosexual scum like you defending homophobes. You’d likely piss your pants if you were face to face with any of us you pissant!
blackhook
Abso-lutely! Straight men who are secure in their own sexuality have ZERO need to obsess about, and attack, gay people & peaceful pride gatherings. Many people are asking: What went on in that dark UHaul van b4 these dumber-than-dirt white ‘supremacists’ — who apparently didn’t get the memo that white ‘supremacists’ are ALWAYS the biggest losers — were caught? You can’t make this stuff up! LMFAO @ these dimwitted chuds.
skjontheedge
@jt1990
No doubt they are funded by rich racists, probably the same backers that anonymously bailed them out of jail.
echo2400
Most of those that scream the loudest about the gay community get outed before their life is over, there has been dozens and dozens of republican gay haters outed, preachers have a big problem with it too.
RyanMBecker
Jt1990,
Did you not read the part where all the men were bailed out by “anonymous donors”??? I’m willing to bet that the bail was more than the cost of round trip bus tickets.
Mister P
Modern day Fascists say “grooming kids” rather than their ever popular The “Jews are to blame.”
Chrisk
Yeah, you’ve hit the nail on the head. They’ve always hated Jews and blacks. It’s their whole damn identity. White Power and shit. They’re just using gay/grooming thing as a PR ploy right now because it’s unfortunetly popular with the Republican base.
Also, he just turned his back on his family for his new family. If that’s not a cult I don’t know what is. This cult has filled the void as his Mom described it.
Covid Hermit
I’m so sick of this ridiculous “grooming” crap that I’m honestly about ready to start screaming.
FWIW, from kindergarten to 8th grade, all my teachers were female. I’m pretty sure NONE of them told me that I should be attracted to having sex with men. Yet I’m still gay. So this “grooming” argument is just total and complete BS. Where the F in plain words do they come up with this?!?!
Brian
There were some Republican politicians who said that “most” kindergarten teachers are trying to convert children to become gay and/or trans… and literally within the week were saying that elementary school teachers are heroes who need more guns.
CNY1983
all the hatred we see today can be traced back to the republican party and their “toilet paper” – the trumps.
it should be our duty to continue to shove it in their faces: republicans are nothing but homophobic bigots and thiefs grifting off whoever they can.
civil war? gimme a break who wants to fight these sissies?
ffmikey
These hate groups have nothing to do with the Republican Party, they are hate groups plain and simple. As far as Republicans hating gay and lesbians, it wasn’t a Republican who pushed for and signed into law Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. That anti gay legislation originated with Bill Clinton. And it wasn’t the stonewall Democratic Club who filed a lawsuit that resulted in the law being repealed, it was the Lincoln Gay republicans who did it. I’m a Viet Nam Veteran and every unit I served from Basic Training on had openly gay members so of which were in open relationships. There are anti Gay & Lesbian on both sides of the aisle. To single out one side is only attempting to be Politically Correct. Every bigot, no matter what their political affiliation is should be chastised. And yes, each and everyone of those arrested in Idaho most likely has sexual issues they fear will be revealed.
echo2400
Texas republicans are pushing through 40 new laws attacking gays, transexuals and worst of all transexual children who already have an attempted suicide rate of 48% and an accomplished death 18% 0f the time. Republicans are attacking transexual children all over the country and passing hundreds of laws to harm children. There has not been one off the coop members yet to be identified as a democrat, In the black lives protest it was the umbrella man dressed in black breaking one window after another and setting the businesses afire he is a republican………….
Diplomat
Trump jailed in orange jump suit with no visitation rights. Great place to start.
nebskram
no we need him to have visitation so we can get daily pics of him throwing a fit plus him in jail we will finely find out if his “hair” is his hair or not
RyanMBecker
Studies have shown that the worst homophobes are often fueled by self-loathing latent homosexuality. These guys didn’t just dislike gays, but spent money and time — and broke the law — to express their hatred. Since they’re no garden variety homophobes, they’re prime candidates for closeted self-loathing gays mentioned in the studies.
In a landmark study, self-identified straight men were divided into two groups through a questionnaire: homophobic and not homophobic. They were then shown gay porn, and penile plethysmography was used to measure arousal. The device used strain guage sensors wrapped around penis to determine tumescence (aka an election). The results showed that, even after controlling for nervousness, only men in the homophobic group became aroused when shown gay porn. The researchers concluded that latent homosexuality may be a factor in homophobia.
Raphael
What a bunch of idiots… Some of them are not even white, while others give really strong “gay vibes”. They just want an excuse to cause trouble.
ZzBomb
Please everyone, stay safe out there at this year’s Pride events. Make sure you have a buddy or a group you’re with, safety in numbers. And always, if you see something, say something. What happened in Idaho this weekend could have been much worst if it wasn’t for a good Samaritan sounding the alarm first.
JClark
How refreshing — and unfortunately rare — to see a positive, caring comment like this on Queerty or any other site. Thank you! I hope the universe reflects back to you the positive energy you’ve shared.
Harley
Gay people can open carry too. These pussies would run for the hills if anyone fought back.
Eternal.Cowboy
Why do they dress like Best Buy employees? Is that supposed to be intimidating?
Josh in OR
He ‘can’t leave the group’? Why? What do they have over his head to keep him loyal? Did he sleep with the leader of the group, and there are pictures? Has he committed a felony that they are covering for him as long as he’s loyal?
Can we PLEASE stop giving ‘religious freedom’ to violent death cults masquerading as Christians?
Jim
These guys better stay clear of pissed off drag queens.
THey’ll beat their lily white butts
Kangol2
A gay White supremacist nationalist who wanted to attack other LGBTQ people–beyond disgusting. Am I surprised? Nope. Just look at all the anti-LGBTQ rhetoric out there. (And on here, where JT1990 claimed it was staged!) Thankfully, as Zzbomb says, a good samaritan called the authorities after spotting the potential terrorists assembling, and everyone should keep their wits about them during this month and all the time, because LGBTQ people have always been and especially now are being targeted by these monsters.
Navycut57
Hit the nail right on the head Kangol2!! Excellent comment – glad you mentioned JT1990, now I don’t have to! Thanks
rand503
The article isn’t written well. Jared Boyce’s FATHER is gay and left. There is no evidence that Jared, the Neo-nazi, is gay.
Kangol2
Ah, so his father is gay, and he wants to harm LGBTQ people. Still a serious problem, and i’m glad they caught him before he and his fellow goons could wreak havoc!
Den
Don’t assume that jt1990 is gay. It is more likely that he (if it is a he) is a hetero troll who is stupid enough to think we are as stupid as he is, and just as likely to be influenced by lies and fantasy as he is.
monty clift
Not the first time nor will it be the last, unfortunately. Remember the gay white nationalist who attacked a drag queen story hour event a year or so ago then shortly after killed himself.
tjack47
They may have European ancestors, but there’s nothing European about them. Even Eugenics would’ve thinned them out of the herd. What is all their hate about except ignorance and conspiracy theories. They are emboldened by the right.
Essie
I love the Mom and she’s right to out her son for what he is but I fear for her safety. There are some real crazies out there and they wouldn’t hesitate to harm her just to show loyalty to these cult leaders. Also, I wonder if her son actually knew what the cult leader intended to do at that rally. Were they planning to attack as many people as they could and harm them? Repeating that “We were just there because they’re grooming kids” sounds like brainwashing.
DBMC
Of course he lived with his mother.
tad_boomer
The leaders of this cult know the difference between pedophiles and lgbtq people. They find these angry ignorant people who don’t know the difference and feed them this crap.
Frankly, I’m really fed up with all this right wing extremism bs.
johncp56
yes they should have been turned in, but the parent that kicked him out need to educate him not put him out wet and mad, it is frighting how many white supremacist groups there are, thinking they own the world, and the rest of us are a groomer pedos, they need some honest history lessens
Jaquelope
Considering that these yahoos are so far down the rabbit holes with their brainwashing and all that, do you honestly believe that they would actually believe any *honest* history lessons? I seriously doubt it.
His mother might have tried her best to educate him, but this just seems to be case as described in the old, Merle Haggard song, “Mama Tried”. Some people just can’t be reached.
echo2400
Why are these adult men living with mommy? What a bunch of losers.
johncp56
As a gay man I find the parents guardians just as guilty, where were this guys history lessens at home, basic right from wrong, and do not use Religion, that’s another fairytale to judge and hate
Den
First of all, that’s lessons not lessens.
Second, young adults are very often drawn away from the guidance of their parents by peer pressure or “falling in with the wrong crowd”. Were it all that easy for parents to assure the right future for their kids, there would be many fewer drug addicts, homeless people, criminals, and so on…a significant number of whom came from “good homes” but fell victim to a series of poor choices over which their parents had no control.
DrJohn
politics aside, some of them are cute af.
DavidIntl
I am glad someone else said it, so that I don’t feel too shallow. And I bet I know which one you have your eye on… Whenever there is a story like this and inevitably someone refers to the guys in question as ‘closet cases’ I am often skeptical – I really don’t believe that everyone who dislikes gay people does so due to their own internal conflicts. But in this case, I am kind of hoping they are right.
echo2400
Oh please they bare an ugly hateful group that can’t get laid by anybody but themselves, noone else would have them. Even their mothers are kicking the adults out of the house.
Nancy Joyzee
has anyone checked their 23 and me: their count might be off
GayEGO
Based on the examinations by the college in Maryland, these are all Homophobics!
rand503
Last week, a gunman killed three male co-workers at Smithsburg, MD. He claimed they were all pedophiles, but of course there is no evidence of that. Obviously, he reads all these conspiracy theories online saying that pedophiles are everywhere.
So now, you don’t even have to be gay, people can just assume you are pedophile and gun you down. That’s the society we live in now. I posted on Facebook just now that any person who really believes that because I am gay, I am probably a pedophile and/or a groomer of young kids should just unfriend me now. Anyone who thinks that of me or my gay brothers and is so easily manipulated should be out of life.
We need to fight back. The GQP wants to demonize us.
Kangol2
The GQP doesn’t just want to demonize us, they ARE demonizing us, and have been doing so for decades. Don’t forget that RepubliQans all over the US pushed for anti-gay marriage bills in state legislatures in part to drive out turnout to help reinstall George W. Bush in office. W Bush actively supported and courted these fanatics. But you can go even further back to the Lavender Scare under Dwight Eisenhower, etc. And that GQP was a LOT different than the current one, but going after LGBTQ people is a feature, not a bug.
toddlicious
Shakespeare said it best, “the queen, she doth protest too much…”
What a bunch of losers. Period.
fur_hunter
EHHEHEEHEH EHAAAHAHAHAHEHEHHEHEHHEHE HAHAAHAHAHAHH EHEHHEHEHEHEH AHAHHAHAHAHH HEHEHEHEHEHHEHE AHHHAHAHHHAHH HEHEHEEHHEHHHEHHHAHAAHHAHHH HEHEHEHEHHEHEHEHEHHEAHAH A A A AHAHEHEHHEHEHEHEHEH
Desiderata
I look forward to police doing a similar job when ANTIFA members go looking for trouble, but that seems to be state sanctioned destabilisation.
bachy
Increasingly, the hotpoint of violence appears to be Morons vs. Crossdressers.
msfrost
A patriot, wants, to help make the country better, without taking, They, take and give nothing back.
1.
a person who vigorously supports their country and is prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors.
“a true patriot”
What is JFK most famous quote?
“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” “A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on.” “The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.”May 29, 2022
bigrawtop
The leader is the only one bearded. Hmmm.
scotty
the gay runs deep in that bunch. remember, the more they protest and deny, the deeper in the closet they are. i wonder if the truck ride was before or after the circle jerk in the walmart parking lot. (oops sorry proudboys ive let the world in on your secret.) ttfn
echo2400
I hope they do, but I don’t see were the police had grounds to arrest them, check the vehicle for illegal weapons but when they were not found I don’t see cause. I hope they can prove they were up to illegal activity because I am sure they were looking to cause trouble. It was fun to watch them ‘take a knee’ and be unmasked one by one. These officers should have been at Uvalde, and at the Capital coop sounds like they might have ‘nipped it in the bud’ Thanks to the police for keeping the people safe.
RyanMBecker
“Karen Amsden … spoke exclusively to the Daily Beast…”
No she didn’t. Amsden did a taped interview with CNN, and then did another extensive live interview with Don Lemon. I’ve posted both interviews.
I have to say that I didn’t take her seriously. She smirked and even laughed throughout the interviews. Not once did she mention gays, only saying that she loves all people. There was nothing about her ex being gay, however, so I learned something new in this article. When she said that she evicted her son, I took it as an informal request and not an ultimatum. In fact, last I heard he was still living in her basement. I don’t blame her, being a mom, but the media seems to make the story more dramatic than it is.