Minuemen update news
Missouri patrol names new leader for information center under fire for militia report
By CHRIS BLANK
The Associated Press
JEFFERSON CITY The Missouri State Highway Patrol on Monday replaced the director of an intelligence center which has been under fire after producing a report suggesting militia members often support certain political candidates.
The patrol's superintendent, Col. James Keathley, announced the personnel change at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing after more than a month of angry complaints from conservatives. The change came less than a week after Keathley was questioned by the same panel of lawmakers about the information center and its modern-militia report.
Lt. David A. Hall, who first joined the patrol in 1993, now takes over the Missouri Information Analysis Center. Hall rose through the ranks in the patrol's Drug and Crime Control Division in northeast Missouri and transferred to Jefferson City-based Troop F in 2007.
Besides the new director, Keathley said the information center also will report to a member of the superintendent's staff.
"I don't see us releasing another strategic report of this nature any time in the near future," he said. "Those are going to be scrutinized extremely heavily from this point forward."
The Missouri Information Analysis Center collects intelligence from state and federal agencies to combat terrorism and criminal activity. It was created under former Gov. Matt Blunt, and earlier this year, Gov. Jay Nixon helped lead a tour of the Jefferson City fusion center for U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.
The controversial report says that some militia members subscribe to militant anti-abortion or anti-illegal immigration movements. It also notes that members usually support presidential candidates such as Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas; Libertarian Bob Barr; and Constitution Party member Chuck Baldwin.
Neither Keathley nor a Highway Patrol news release announcing the change in directors at the Missouri Information Analysis Center mentioned former director Van Godsey. Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. John Hotz said Monday that Godsey was transferred to another spot in the Division of Drug and Crime Control, but he had no further details.
Godsey is not a uniformed member of the patrol.
Nixon, a Democrat, last month blamed the report's contents on "overzealousness" while defending police intelligence-gathering and suggesting that the information center could see personnel changes. Nixon's comments came after Republican Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder called the militia report "political profiling" and demanded that disciplinary action be taken against Nixon's director of public safety.
Since then, House Republicans added to the state budget a prohibition on using state money for "political profiling." Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Gary Nodler said Monday that he found some elements in the report detailing how historic flags can be used as militia symbols to be "inappropriate and offensive."
"It really is an affront to people who are patriots," said Nodler, R-Joplin.
Responding to a request by The Associated Press for other reports written by the Missouri Information and Analysis Center, the patrol on Monday released copies of the militia report and 10 others. The patrol redacted some portions of the reports and refused to provide copies of five others. Hotz said the withheld reports contain operational techniques and procedures.
The reports that were not provided deal with the New Black Panther Party, the National Socialist Movement, the Volksfront-White Supremacist group, illicit use of digital music players and anarchist tactics.
Those that were released contained historical background of various groups and movements.
Next page >
The Associated Press
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Man pleads guilty to sodomizing, killing dog
A Lawrence man pleaded guilty today to two counts of felony animal cruelty, one for what police have said was killing a dog by sodomizing it.
As part of the plea, Cem Basoflas, 21, has agreed not to fight deportation to his native Turkey, Douglas County prosecutors said.
He is to serve 30 days shock time, get a psychological evaluation and remain in custody until his deportation, prosecutors said. He is to be sentenced May 8.
Basoflas pleaded guilty for killing the dog in February and for one act of abuse last year involving a cat that survived. He owned both animals, police said.
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Flight student charged with piloting plane into US
By JIM SALTER
Associated Press Writer
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Daily American Republic, Butler County Sheriff
Adam Dylan Leon, the suspect who allegedly stole an aircraft from Canada Monday, is seen in a booking photo released by the Butler County, Missouri Sheriff's Department Tuesday, April 7, 2009.
Trooper: Canadian's US flight was suicide attempt
Flight student charged with piloting plane into US "factbox" -->
More News
$(document).ready(function() { replaceRelated(440);});
Suicide by fighter jet was the goal of a flight student who stole a plane in Canada, entered U.S. airspace and flew an erratic path over the Midwest with the military on his tail before he landed safely on a rural Missouri road, federal authorities said Tuesday.
Adam Dylan Leon, who was running out of fuel when he landed the plane Monday night in Ellsinore, Mo., was charged Tuesday with transportation of stolen property and illegal entry. The six-hour flight prompted a brief evacuation of the Wisconsin Capitol and warnings to commercial aircraft over Chicago and other cities, but terrorism is not believed to be a motive.
According to the federal complaint, Leon told the FBI that he flew the plane into the U.S. expecting to be shot down by military aircraft. The complaint said Leon also told the FBI he "has not felt like himself lately" and he recently was being treated by a psychiatrist.
Leon was jailed in St. Louis and does not yet have an attorney. A federal detention hearing is set for Friday.
A background check of Leon, 31, of Thunder Bay, Ontario, showed no connection to terrorism, FBI agent John Gillies said.
Carl Rusnok, a spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Leon was born in Turkey with the name Yavuz Berke, moved to Canada and became a naturalized citizen last year.
He would face up to 10 years in prison if convicted and would serve any sentence in the U.S. before being deported, U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway said.
The plane was reported stolen Monday afternoon from Confederation College Flight School at Thunder Bay International Airport in Ontario. The college said in a statement that the flight was unauthorized but that Leon was enrolled in its program.
The plane was intercepted by F-16 fighters from the Wisconsin National Guard after crossing into the state near the Michigan state line.
The pilot flew erratically and didn't communicate with the fighter pilots, said Mike Kucharek, spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command.
The pilot acknowledged seeing the F-16s but didn't obey their nonverbal commands to follow them, Kucharek said in a telephone interview from Colorado Springs, Colo.
The plane's path over Wisconsin prompted a brief, precautionary evacuation of the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, although there were few workers in the building at the time and the governor was not in town. The plane also flew over Chicago, Springfield, Ill., and St. Louis, prompting authorities to warn commercial aircraft in the area.
The Cessna 172 continued south over Illinois and eastern Missouri before landing near Ellsinore, about 120 miles south-southwest of St. Louis.
"We tailed it all the way," Maj. Brian Martin said. "Once it landed our aircraft returned to base."
The Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper who made the arrest said Leon was almost out of fuel when he picked his landing spot, a hilltop on a former stretch of U.S. 60 that is now just a paved loop off the main highway.
"How he avoided the power lines is anyone's guess," Trooper Justin Watson told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Tuesday night. "He stated that he didn't want to land on the four-lane highway because he was surprised about the amount of traffic on the road for no more populated than it was."
From there, Leon apparently hitched a ride to a small convenience store near Ellsinore. Watson said he was surprised at Leon's response when he approached him in the store to arrest him.
"His statement was," Watson recalled, "he was expecting us and he was the person we were looking for.
Next page >
AP writers Robert Imrie in Wausau, Wis., Todd Richmond in Madison, Wis., James Carlson in Milwaukee, Betsy Taylor in St. Louis, Cheryl Wittenauer in Ellsinore, Mo., and Rob Gillies in Toronto contributed to this report.
Posted on Tue, Apr. 07, 2009 08:31 PM
By CHRIS BLANK
The Associated Press
JEFFERSON CITY The Missouri State Highway Patrol on Monday replaced the director of an intelligence center which has been under fire after producing a report suggesting militia members often support certain political candidates.
The patrol's superintendent, Col. James Keathley, announced the personnel change at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing after more than a month of angry complaints from conservatives. The change came less than a week after Keathley was questioned by the same panel of lawmakers about the information center and its modern-militia report.
Lt. David A. Hall, who first joined the patrol in 1993, now takes over the Missouri Information Analysis Center. Hall rose through the ranks in the patrol's Drug and Crime Control Division in northeast Missouri and transferred to Jefferson City-based Troop F in 2007.
Besides the new director, Keathley said the information center also will report to a member of the superintendent's staff.
"I don't see us releasing another strategic report of this nature any time in the near future," he said. "Those are going to be scrutinized extremely heavily from this point forward."
The Missouri Information Analysis Center collects intelligence from state and federal agencies to combat terrorism and criminal activity. It was created under former Gov. Matt Blunt, and earlier this year, Gov. Jay Nixon helped lead a tour of the Jefferson City fusion center for U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.
The controversial report says that some militia members subscribe to militant anti-abortion or anti-illegal immigration movements. It also notes that members usually support presidential candidates such as Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas; Libertarian Bob Barr; and Constitution Party member Chuck Baldwin.
Neither Keathley nor a Highway Patrol news release announcing the change in directors at the Missouri Information Analysis Center mentioned former director Van Godsey. Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. John Hotz said Monday that Godsey was transferred to another spot in the Division of Drug and Crime Control, but he had no further details.
Godsey is not a uniformed member of the patrol.
Nixon, a Democrat, last month blamed the report's contents on "overzealousness" while defending police intelligence-gathering and suggesting that the information center could see personnel changes. Nixon's comments came after Republican Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder called the militia report "political profiling" and demanded that disciplinary action be taken against Nixon's director of public safety.
Since then, House Republicans added to the state budget a prohibition on using state money for "political profiling." Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Gary Nodler said Monday that he found some elements in the report detailing how historic flags can be used as militia symbols to be "inappropriate and offensive."
"It really is an affront to people who are patriots," said Nodler, R-Joplin.
Responding to a request by The Associated Press for other reports written by the Missouri Information and Analysis Center, the patrol on Monday released copies of the militia report and 10 others. The patrol redacted some portions of the reports and refused to provide copies of five others. Hotz said the withheld reports contain operational techniques and procedures.
The reports that were not provided deal with the New Black Panther Party, the National Socialist Movement, the Volksfront-White Supremacist group, illicit use of digital music players and anarchist tactics.
Those that were released contained historical background of various groups and movements.
Next page >
The Associated Press
=======================================================================================
Man pleads guilty to sodomizing, killing dog
A Lawrence man pleaded guilty today to two counts of felony animal cruelty, one for what police have said was killing a dog by sodomizing it.
As part of the plea, Cem Basoflas, 21, has agreed not to fight deportation to his native Turkey, Douglas County prosecutors said.
He is to serve 30 days shock time, get a psychological evaluation and remain in custody until his deportation, prosecutors said. He is to be sentenced May 8.
Basoflas pleaded guilty for killing the dog in February and for one act of abuse last year involving a cat that survived. He owned both animals, police said.
========================================================================================================================
Flight student charged with piloting plane into US
By JIM SALTER
Associated Press Writer
function PopupPic(sPicURL, sHeight, sWidth) {
window.open( "http://media.kansascity.com/static/popup.html?"+sPicURL, "", "resizable=1,HEIGHT=" +sHeight+ ",WIDTH=" +sWidth);
}
Daily American Republic, Butler County Sheriff
Adam Dylan Leon, the suspect who allegedly stole an aircraft from Canada Monday, is seen in a booking photo released by the Butler County, Missouri Sheriff's Department Tuesday, April 7, 2009.
Trooper: Canadian's US flight was suicide attempt
Flight student charged with piloting plane into US "factbox" -->
More News
$(document).ready(function() { replaceRelated(440);});
Suicide by fighter jet was the goal of a flight student who stole a plane in Canada, entered U.S. airspace and flew an erratic path over the Midwest with the military on his tail before he landed safely on a rural Missouri road, federal authorities said Tuesday.
Adam Dylan Leon, who was running out of fuel when he landed the plane Monday night in Ellsinore, Mo., was charged Tuesday with transportation of stolen property and illegal entry. The six-hour flight prompted a brief evacuation of the Wisconsin Capitol and warnings to commercial aircraft over Chicago and other cities, but terrorism is not believed to be a motive.
According to the federal complaint, Leon told the FBI that he flew the plane into the U.S. expecting to be shot down by military aircraft. The complaint said Leon also told the FBI he "has not felt like himself lately" and he recently was being treated by a psychiatrist.
Leon was jailed in St. Louis and does not yet have an attorney. A federal detention hearing is set for Friday.
A background check of Leon, 31, of Thunder Bay, Ontario, showed no connection to terrorism, FBI agent John Gillies said.
Carl Rusnok, a spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Leon was born in Turkey with the name Yavuz Berke, moved to Canada and became a naturalized citizen last year.
He would face up to 10 years in prison if convicted and would serve any sentence in the U.S. before being deported, U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway said.
The plane was reported stolen Monday afternoon from Confederation College Flight School at Thunder Bay International Airport in Ontario. The college said in a statement that the flight was unauthorized but that Leon was enrolled in its program.
The plane was intercepted by F-16 fighters from the Wisconsin National Guard after crossing into the state near the Michigan state line.
The pilot flew erratically and didn't communicate with the fighter pilots, said Mike Kucharek, spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command.
The pilot acknowledged seeing the F-16s but didn't obey their nonverbal commands to follow them, Kucharek said in a telephone interview from Colorado Springs, Colo.
The plane's path over Wisconsin prompted a brief, precautionary evacuation of the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, although there were few workers in the building at the time and the governor was not in town. The plane also flew over Chicago, Springfield, Ill., and St. Louis, prompting authorities to warn commercial aircraft in the area.
The Cessna 172 continued south over Illinois and eastern Missouri before landing near Ellsinore, about 120 miles south-southwest of St. Louis.
"We tailed it all the way," Maj. Brian Martin said. "Once it landed our aircraft returned to base."
The Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper who made the arrest said Leon was almost out of fuel when he picked his landing spot, a hilltop on a former stretch of U.S. 60 that is now just a paved loop off the main highway.
"How he avoided the power lines is anyone's guess," Trooper Justin Watson told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Tuesday night. "He stated that he didn't want to land on the four-lane highway because he was surprised about the amount of traffic on the road for no more populated than it was."
From there, Leon apparently hitched a ride to a small convenience store near Ellsinore. Watson said he was surprised at Leon's response when he approached him in the store to arrest him.
"His statement was," Watson recalled, "he was expecting us and he was the person we were looking for.
Next page >
AP writers Robert Imrie in Wausau, Wis., Todd Richmond in Madison, Wis., James Carlson in Milwaukee, Betsy Taylor in St. Louis, Cheryl Wittenauer in Ellsinore, Mo., and Rob Gillies in Toronto contributed to this report.
Posted on Tue, Apr. 07, 2009 08:31 PM
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