"Utah Militia Leader Tried To Blow Up BLM Building, Feds Say"

"SALT LAKE CITY — A Stockton man described by prosecutors as the "commander of a citizen militia group" was indicted Thursday after allegedly trying to blow up a Bureau of Land Management cabin in Arizona.

William Keebler, 57, was indicted in U.S. District Court on one count of attempted damage to federal property by means of fire or explosive. He was arrested Wednesday in Nephi by combined forces from the FBI and BLM.

Keebler is the leader of a group called the Patriots Defense Force, according to charging documents filed in federal court. He was allegedly present for the standoff in Bunkerville, Nevada, between BLM agents and a group that included Cliven Bundy. He was also an associate of Lavoy Finicum, an Arizona rancher who participated in the takeover of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Oregon, and was later shot and killed by federal agents while resisting arrest, according to prosecutors."

Pat Reavy reports for the Deseret News June 23, 2016.

SEE ALSO:

"Right-Wing Militant Charged For Planting A Bomb At BLM Building" (High Country News)