Thread by @keikoinboston

1. While reading up on the driver who was just charged with 2nd-degree intentional murder for a crash in Uptown Minneapolis that killed a protester, I’ve been seeing mentions of a truck driver who drove through hundreds of protesters on I-35W on 5/31/20.
archive.ph/k3l0J

2. I remember seeing the footage last year year and wondering what was going through the trucker’s mind. The videos did not look good. But if he was intent on killing protesters, why did he stop suddenly & how did everyone survive?

3. I recently learned from a local that there was more to Bogdan Vechirko’s story than I’d seen in initial reports.

This thread will look at his story and how the media covered it. #ComplicateTheNarrative

4. On Sunday 5/31/20, protesters had blocked I-35, an interstate highway which runs through Minneapolis, to protest the police killing of George Floyd on 5/25/20.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstat…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Fl…

5. Vechirko was pulled from the cab of his tanker truck, beaten by protesters, and robbed of his wallet, cell phone, and other items according to his wife, Liudmila, who was 8 months pregnant at the time. She made this video asking for donations.

6. Police arrived and arrested Vechirko on suspicion of assault. He was jailed until Tuesday midday, when he was released without charges, because they were out of time. The investigation continued.

archive.ph/I79uT

startribune.com/trucker-who-ro…

7. Officials quickly said that there was no indication that Vechirko had deliberately targeted protesters and that no one was injured (see downthread for more - officials now say one woman suffered minor injuries).

archive.is/PEZQa

kare11.com/article/news/l…

8. People dug up an October 2019 $100 donation to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.

Vechirko was labeled a “terrorist” and “white supremacist” online. The same accusations with no evidence have been made against the Uptown crash driver, Nicholas Kraus.

9. Adding to the confusion, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti misidentified trucker Bogdan Vechirko in Minnesota, an immigrant from Russia who has lived here since he was 4 years old (Star Tribune tweet #6), as a former soldier in the Ukrainian army.

polygraph.info/a/kremlin-medi…

10. While there is a an ex-military man with social media accounts under the name “Bogdan Vechirko”, he’s a different man who lives in Ukraine whose name appears to be Bogdan Lipko. See this thread for more:

archive.is/OXqfa

https://twitter.com/ChristopherJM/status/1267429323121872897

11. That weekend the Twin Cities—Minneapolis & St. Paul—were under an 8pm curfew order issued by Gov. Tim Walz due to unrest in previous days. It was set to end at 6am on Monday morning.

kttc.com/2020/05/31/wal…

12. Vechirko was in Minneapolis on Sunday responding to the request of Lonnie McQuirter, the black owner of 36 Lyn Refuel Station which the Minnesota Reformer describes as "a south Minneapolis institution”.

Photo credit: Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune

startribune.com/the-bp-36-lyn-…

13. McQuirter tweeted at 6:20pm CDT to defend Vechirko, minutes after he drove onto I-35 and was pulled from his cab by protesters.

archive.ph/PPaYd

https://twitter.com/LonnieMcQ/status/1267234619792990209

14. Local NBC-affiliate, KARE 11 talked to McQuirter on 6/1/20, the day after Vechirko drove through protesters on I-35.

kare11.com/article/news/l…

15. The Minnesota Reformer published an article on 6/2/20 with quotes from McQuirter defending Vechirko and explaining why he’d asked for a second gas delivery that day. Vechirko had also made the first run (Washington Post tweet #21).

minnesotareformer.com/2020/06/02/the…

16.

"McQuirter wanted to make sure he had enough gas at his 36th and Lyndale BP station Sunday afternoon so people could get home before the Minneapolis curfew in place to restore order since widespread arson and looting broke out after the death of George Floyd."

17. McQuirter told the Reformer that "Vechirko has been delivering gas to his station for some time”, was “quiet, courteous and easy going” and had acted professionally “in situations where customers gave him a hard time". He told KARE 11 that Vechirko was "not racist at all”.

18. Non-local media ran stories that dug into Vechirko’s criminal history in Hennepin County and his history of donations to Trump’s campaign and the RNC.

6/2/20: heavy.com/news/2020/05/b…

6/3/20: insider.com/bogdan-vechirk…

19. The Washington Post was the only national mainsteam outlet I could find in a Google News search that appears to have mentioned the context McQuirter provided to local outlets about Vechirko but it’s no longer up at the link in my search results:
washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/06…

20. I did find it archived here under the headline “Friend of man who drove a truck into Minneapolis protesters speaks out”, but can’t find it live on The Washington Post when searching that headline.

archive.is/hTeWH

21. McQuirter told The Washington Post that “[Vechirko’s] a first-generation American family who moved here for a better life - he’s a hardworking individual.”

22. McQuirter feels “in some ways responsible” that it was his request for help for him and his customers that put Vechirko on I-35 heading home at the same time as the protesters were blocking it and now Vechirko’s ”name and reputation have been ruined.”

23. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office filed felony and misdemeanor charges against Vechirko on 10/21/20.

hennepinattorney.org/news/news/2020…

Complaint: hennepinattorney.org/-/media/cao/Bo…

mprnews.org/story/2020/10/…

24. The charges against Vechirko:

1 count threats of violence - reckless disregard risk (felony)
Max sentence: 5 years and/or $10,000 fine

1 count criminal vehicular operation - bodily harm - gross negligence (gross misdemeanor)
Max sentence: 1 year and/or $3,000 fine

25. Investigators re-enacted his drive and found that his “line of sight would have given him sufficient time to stop his truck after viewing the crowd.”

One protester “fell and suffered scrapes and abrasions to her leg” as she tried to get out of the truck’s path.

26. Vechirko “admitted that he was kind of in a hurry” and “hoped that if he went slow the crowd would let him past”. He stopped when he saw the woman fall in front of his truck. He also “acknowledged that he could have stopped the truck sooner.”

27. The statement of probable cause concluded that:

“The thorough investigation showed that the defendant wanted to scare the crowd out of his path."

28. Until today I couldn’t find any mainstream media follow up on Vechirko’s case since last October.

29. Today Vechirko appeared in court online to enter into a "continuance without prosecution" agreement with prosecutors.

This means that if he stays out of trouble for the next year all charges will be dropped.

startribune.com/charges-to-be-…

30. Although Vechirko had "entered the interstate before workers had blocked off access to the highway” (KARE 11 tweet #7), …

31. ... “Vechirko should have known something was occurring on the bridge because of the large crowd and vehicles stopped on I-35W northbound on the road leading to the bridge.” (Star Tribune tweet #29)

32. In February, the Transportation Nation Network reported that Vechirko had made an agreement with prosecutors to “resolve this case”, though no details were released at the time.

archive.ph/rQl0W

transportationnation.com/trucker-who-dr…

33. TNN cited anonymous sources that "Vechirko will be required to attend an “educational program” of some kind.” No details have been reported by TNN or other outlets.

34. TNN also reported that "Video later obtained by Vechirko’s defense counsel revealed a protester pointed a handgun at the trucker and fired multiple shots at the semi-tanker, blowing out a front tire."

35. No charges have been filed against protesters who had been involved in assaulting Vechirko, damaging his truck, or stealing his possessions would be prosecuted.

36. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension told TNN previously that “The truck driver indicated to the BCA that he does not wish for charges to be filed against anyone for his injuries or damage sustained during the incident”.

transportationnation.com/trucker-who-wa…

37. When I was reading some of the initial coverage I felt that there was a lot we weren’t being told.

Some of that was because it was too early and the investigation had just begun but very few outlets attempted to #ComplicateTheNarrative.

https://twitter.com/keikoinboston/status/1366562801100206082

38. What we know now still isn’t everything but provides a more complete picture of who Bogdan Vechirko is and what he was doing on I-35 that day.

39. Should Vechirko have tried to drive through a crowd of hundreds of protesters with a tanker truck? Clearly not. He was wrong & everyone is lucky no one died.

But the conspiracy theories that continue to circulate because he was a white Trump supporter don’t make any sense.

40. I don't believe a man with a baby on the way doesn’t decide to attempt last minute mass murder of social justice protesters after coincidentally being in a position to do so because he literally went the extra mile to help a black business owner and customers.

41. People go out of their way to get gas at @36Lyndale because they have some of the lowest prices in the region.

36lyn.com

startribune.com/the-bp-36-lyn-…

42. Vechirko was racially and politically profiled by people who rightly extended empathy to George Floyd. Vechirko was the flip side to that empathy—a scapegoat for the misplaced fury of crowd

43. A relative told the Star Tribune:

"He's a nice, friendly guy,” [Art] Loghinov said. "He was just going home."

Lonnie McQuirter said “The last words I told to him was, ‘Get home safe, get home safe to your family”. (Minnesota Reformer tweet #15)

44. Addendum:

It occurred to me that I should include info on what to do if you find yourself in a situation where you’re driving and protesters or any crowd are blocking the road and/or surrounding your vehicle.

nbcsandiego.com/news/local/san…

45. Laws may vary by jurisdiction but drivers DO NOT have the right of way even if people are illegally blocking a roadway. Depending on the circumstances and injuries/deaths, drivers may face criminal prosecution.

reuters.com/article/uk-fac…

46. Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of UC Berkeley Law says that legally & ethically "drivers should use the least amount of force possible.”

sacramento.cbslocal.com/2020/09/15/dri…

47. If you do find yourself in your car with a roadway blocked by protesters:

- Try to detour before you’re trapped
- Come to a complete stop at a safe distance if you can’t
- Lock your doors
- Remain calm
- Call 911

clickorlando.com/traffic/2020/0…

48. Also important:

- Keep your windows up
- Stay in your vehicle. Do not get out and confront protesters.
- Record what’s happening in case you need it later.