16 Florida White Supremacists Hit With Major Charges

Via press release from the Justice Department:

Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the unsealing of an indictment charging 16 individuals with violent crimes in aid of racketeering. The names of the individuals, their charges, and their potential penalties appear in the chart below.

According to the indictment, the defendants were members of Unforgiven, a racketeering enterprise engaged in acts of murder, violence, kidnapping, robbery, obstruction of justice, and other offenses.

The indictment also alleges that Unforgiven used “corrupt law enforcement officers and state employees” to gather information about people, investigations, and prosecutions, and to smuggle contraband to incarcerated inmates.

The indictment charges each of the 16 defendants with committing at least one violent act in aid of Unforgiven, including kidnappings, conspiracies to commit assault, threats of violence, and assaults with deadly weapons.

The Hill reports:

Three of the members, who go by nicknames such as George “Shrek” Andrews, Joshua “Chain Gang” Wilson and Brandon “Scumbag” Welch, face up to 30 years in prison if they are convicted. Other members named in the indictment include Maverick “Saxon” Maher, Ryan “Pretty Boy” McLaughlin, and Darrin “Nova” Terranova.

One man, David Howell, 39, was also previously charged with assaulting protestors of “Peace Walk for Black Lives” with a deadly weapon last June following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police officer. Another member of the group, Michael Curzio, pleaded guilty Monday for participating in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

NBC News reports:



The group required its members to study “Aryan Philosophy” and carry out acts of extreme violence to gain entry into the gang, the indictment says. They were also required to ​​get tattoos – which included swastikas, iron crosses and SS bolts – pay dues and attend regular meetings known as “Church,” the court papers say. Members also created a political branch called Route 21, which federal prosecutors described as an “attempt to disguise the white supremacist roots of its political activity.”