Associated Press
- Two California men have been charged in a plot to blow up the state's Democratic Party headquarters.
- Prosecutors say Ian Rogers and Jarrod Copeland planned to attack targets associated with Democrats.
- They hoped using explosives to destroy the building would start a movement, prosecutors say.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Two California men have been arrested in connection with a plot to blow up the Democratic Party's headquarters in Sacramento, federal authorities said.
Prosecutors say Ian Benjamin Rogers, 45, of Napa and Jarrod Copeland, 37, of Vallejo started planning over messaging apps to attack targets they associated with Democrats following the 2020 presidential election and sought support from an anti-government militia group.
At the time of their arrest, Rogers was in possession of five pipe bombs and three machine guns. Prosecutors also seized dozens of other guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition during the investigation, according to an affidavit filed in court.
"We allege that Ian Benjamin Rogers possessed homemade pipe bombs and the materials to make more," U.S. Attorney David Anderson said in a statement. "We draw a bright line between lawlessness and our constitutional freedoms. We will prosecute illegal weapons stockpiles regardless of the motivation of the offender."
Prosecutors accuse the pair of planning the attack over messaging apps beginning as early as November 2020.
Around that time, Copeland told Rogers he had connected with a militia group to gather support for their "movement."
"I want to blow up a democrat building bad," Rogers told Copeland a few weeks later.
"I'm thinking sac office first target," he then said, in reference to the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento.
Copeland confirmed he was on board with the plan,
"I agree," he wrote, according to the affidavit. "Plan attack."
Rogers then wrote to Copeland, "after the 20th we go to war."
January 20th was President Joe Biden's inauguration.
Stephanie Keith/Reuters
Copeland said he was willing to die for their movement
Prosecutors believe that the pair hoped their attacks would prompt a movement.
Copeland told police during an investigation into the plans that he didn't take any of the talk seriously and thought Rogers was just blowing off steam over his disappointment that Trump would not be president for four more years, according to court documents.
Prosecutors don't buy it.
Throughout their conversations, Copeland initiated violent conversations, telling Rogers that he has "accepted" that they will "become outlaws for real" and that he had obtained zip tie handcuffs in preparation, according to court documents.
When police searched Copeland's home, they found a "go bag" with food, clothing, identification cards, rifle and pistol magazines, and a package of 10 zip tie handcuffs.
"Heads must be taken," Copeland wrote in one exchange with Rogers. "I don't like to think it but I think we will have to die for what we believe in."
Officers and agents discovered a sticker on Roger's vehicle that is commonly used by the "Three-Percenters," a militia group that ascribes to extreme anti-government and pro-gun beliefs.
The Three-Percenters were among the groups connected to the planning of the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
Rogers and Copeland are charged with conspiracy to destroy by fire or explosive a building used in interstate commerce, possession of unregistered destructive devices, possession of machine guns, and obstruction of justice.