Hate Group Charged With Plotting Melbourne Attack

By  //  June 1, 2012

Felony Convictions Sought

More than a dozen members of the hate group American Front including those shown here have been formally charged with felony crimes for planning attacks in Orlando and Melbourne. (Image courtesy Osecola County Sheriff's Departrment)

OSCEOLA COUNTY, FLORIDA – Prosecutors in Osecola County have formally charged more than a dozen members of a hate group with ties to Brevard County with felony charges for participating in paramilitary training.

Marcus Faella, the leader of the American Front who used to live in Palm Bay, was also charged with directing the activities of a gang and teaching paramilitary training, according to prosecutors.

Nine other members of the group, including Faella and his wife, Patricia Faella, who also once resided in Palm Bay and in Canaveral Groves, have been charged with conspiracy to shoot at, within or into a building.

Former Palm Bay resident Marcus Faella has been charged charged with directing the activities of a gang and teaching paramilitary training. (Image courtesy Osceola County Sheriff's Department)

“Today, Central Floridians sent a strong message to our communities: the message that criminal behavior whose thesis is hate and intolerance will not be allowed to flourish in our neighborhoods,” said Lawson Lamar, state attorney for the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida.

According to a police affidavit, Marcus Faella was planning to stage attacks at Orlando City Hall and at a Melbourne May 1 anarchist gathering that included members of anti-racist skinhead groups.

Protectors

“Faella views himself and the other members of the AF as the protectors of the white race,” police investigators revealed in the affidavit. “Faella has stated his intent during the race war is to kill Jews, immigrants and other minorities.”

Police said that Faella intended to create media attention with a desire to attract new followers for the American Front.

According to records kept by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the American Front has a history of violence dating back to its founding in California in 1987 by David Lynch.

Lynch was shot to death in his home in March 2011, leaving the group with no clear national leader.

Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation agents raided the Amercian Front compound in Osceola County in April. (Image courtesy Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation)

Training

Police who investigated the group’s activities say Faella’s group watched fight training videos and received instruction in the use of AK-47s and other firearms at their Osecola County compound near Holopaw.

The police affidavit said the compound was meant to become a gathering place for white supremacists after the fall of the U.S. government during a race war.

Investigators said American Front members made body armor and sniper suits and were stocking up on supplies in preparation to carry out the attacks.

The charges follow a two-year investigation based on the reports of a confidential informant who fled the fortified compound on April 28.