Thread by @FordFischer

INVESTIGATIVE VIDEO THREAD: The Virginia Kekoas, a pro-gun prepper militia based in Eastern Virginia and formerly affiliated with the Boogaloo movement, tells News2Share that they recently kicked out a member they believe may have been plotting an explosives-related entrapment attempt against the group, or worse.

Russell Richardson Vane IV first made contact with the Virginia Kekoas in April 2022, according to the group's leader Eddie Ray, who goes by "ICE" and member Cody Beckner, who goes by "Sasquatch." Vane allegedly adopted the call sign "Duke."

The pair provided extensive screenshots and documents showing that since joining, Vane - as "Duke" - engaged in an escalating sequence of unusual behavior that included apparent provocations for the group to develop homemade explosives. Homemade explosives lacking an ATF registration are generally a federal felony.

"Sasquatch" and "ICE" spoke exclusively to News2Share to provide a thorough timeline of the events that led up to "Duke" being removed from their organization.

2) ICE and Sasquatch say that upon reaching out to the Kekoas in 2022, Duke identified himself as working for the CIA, but was allowed to remain a prospective member rather than being ejected because they believed he may have advanced knowledge of world-altering events.

3) Within two weeks of joining, the pair say Duke asked about a "group fund." They say no fund exists and members pay their own way, but such a fund could "fall under certain federal laws" like RICO.

ICE says Duke also asked about forming his own chapter and was denied.

4) In the summer of 2023, the Kekoas apparently took Duke out of their recruitment chat and made him a full member.

In August 2023, the Virginia Kekoas held a joint armed rally with the "Last Sons of Liberty" militia led by Mike Dunn at the Gloucester School Board building, where the legality of carrying firearms is currently being disputed in court.

Duke could be seen pointing his rifle into a parking lot.

Sasquatch recalls Duke reiterating that night that he's a "defense intelligence analyst for the CIA."

5) The Kekoas provided screenshots showing Duke asking to bring a friend on a work visa to a training exercise in December 2023. They found this suspicious given the questionable legality of such an individual possessing firearms.

They say Duke then skipped the training.

"To be clear, we don't agree with any gun laws" ICE clarified.

At their subsequent January 15, 2024 pro-gun march in Richmond, the pair recall Duke leaving promptly without saying goodbye as they arrived at the parking garage to depart. This was unusual because they'd typically have a debriefing lunch.

6) ICE provided screenshots showing Duke asking on Feb 5 "Would you be interested in learning some things about HME or is that too spicy for this stage of the game" and being turned down.

He says they then held a group call where Duke was warned against discussing explosives.

7) ICE and Sasquatch allege that just two days later on February 7, Duke used an unvetted meme group including members of other militias to promote the idea of collecting Hydrogen Peroxide, which can be used in explosives.

They provided screenshots and recordings showing them concerned that this appeared to be "Fed plot shit for real."

8) They say this second provocation to discuss explosives resulted in a "more stern" warning to Duke via video chat.

"I told him that this was not allowed," ICE says. "You need to knock it off, don't do it again."

"If you do, we will have to do something, up to releasing you."

9) A few days later, Duke spoke privately with another member, call sign "Preacher."

Duke appeared in screenshots to acknowledge his earlier request that the group collect Hydrogen Peroxide, but then described legal purposes for the chemical and suggested the group was "limiting themselves" by not engaging with it.

As Preacher expressed concerns, Duke appeared to become irritated, but went on to discuss explosives further.

10) In further screenshots provided by ICE dated February 27, Duke appears to say that someone in his office at work had been arrested for printing "docs on [explosion emoji] making."

11) In screenshots provided by Preacher dated just two days later on February 29, Duke appears to say that "looks like I made the front page of Bloomberg" in relation to their reporting on Mavin, a military AI project. ()

Preacher asks "when did the CIA start going by the 'National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency,'" referencing Duke's alleged claim to be in the CIA. Duke responded with a link to a profile on the USGIF. ()bloomberg.com/news/newslette…
usgif.org/biography/jim-…

12) In additional messages provided to News2Share dated March 4th and 5th, Duke appears to suggest that "my cousin's farmhouse blew up" after discussing explosives with the group on several occasions.

He provided the group with photos of the alleged explosion aftermath, which News2Share has not been able to identify the origin of or confirm as authentic.

Ominously, Duke apparently followed up by writing that "A whole lot of houses burning and going kaboom. I wonder if some subversive force has released some literature and is encouraging these explosions?"

13) At a March 9 training, ICE describes that he warned Duke privately "any kind of fed plot against us, we're not doing that."

According to ICE, Duke responded by proposing that a contact in the Russian Embassy could pay "up to $50,000 a month to unify all militias in Virginia."

"I told him he was F'ing crazy," ICE recalls.

14) ICE and Sasquatch both say they later witnessed Duke asking participants "do we have a plan if a president were to get assassinated?"

Sasquatch says this remark "scares the ever-living shit out of me" particularly given his mention of Russians to ICE.

15) Sasquatch described that earlier in the day, Duke handed him an unsolicited package labelled "Sasquatch Confidential For Official Use Only" which he opened at home that night.

The documents, which Sasquatch showed News2Share, included precursor reports and a signature advisory report on the use of homemade explosives marked Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) unclassified but "for official use only," along with a National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)-marked map of regions of Nevada.

16) Chronologically, on March 9 according to ICE and Sasquatch, Duke would have known at the time that he allegedly discussed Russians and presidential assassinations that Sasquatch would later discover the explosives documents he'd handed him earlier.

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1774781795235495967

17) On March 10, according to screenshots provided by ICE, Duke followed up all of this activity by again requesting to form a new chapter of the Kekoas.

ICE says he learned of the documents given to Sasquatch and removed Duke from all the group's chats that day.

18) Preacher then confronted Duke privately, according to additional screenshots provided to News2Share.

Duke appears to deny elements of his alleged conversations with the group while dismissing others as inspirations for a work of fiction.

Preacher ultimately tells Duke he's "breaking contact," as did the rest of the group.

19) "We don't want to be a fed plot," ICE explained.

After kicking out Duke, ICE sent a followup message which he says didn't deliver.

He then sent another explaining the reasons for kicking out Duke to a phone number previously used by Duke, ICE says the message was received and read, but not responded to.

20) "He could be a fed," explained Sasquatch, who also speculated that Duke may have been "just somebody who's trying to fit in who's not very smart."

Sasquatch added that alternatively, he could be "one of those Timothy McVeigh types."

"If he's trying to set me up, joke's on you, this isn't what we're about, we don't want this," Sasquatch said, holding up the apparent DIA documents on homemade explosives. "And we're willing to go public to show that we don't want this."

21) I made several attempts to reach out to Russell Richardson Vane IV for comment in the weeks since recording this interview, including by email, text, Signal message, and phone call.

All messages went unanswered, although Signal confirmed my messages there were received.

22) My full interview with ICE and Sasquatch and all of the relevant evidence obtained thus far can be viewed here on the @N2Sreports YouTube.

As always, all my footage is available to license.

23) In response to my reporting, Mike Dunn just sent me a screenshot from March 10 of him apparently talking to Duke.

"I am not in law enforcement, informant or a lawyer and under no circumstances would I be responsible either directly or indirectly for any militia member imprisonment," Duke appears to tell Dunn.

24) Here is my full write-up on @N2Sreports chronologically detailing the events leading up to the expulsion of a member of the Virginia Kekoas militia.

The receipts are linked throughout the piece.

news2share.com/start/2024/04/…

Small addendum: You may have noticed in one shot from the school board protest, Duke appears to have a facial tattoo.

ICE clarified to me in a phone call last night that in addition to wearing masks, Duke would apply fake temporary tattoos to throw off those who would ID him.

26) The Virginia Kekoas @VirginiaKekoas_ have released a statement in response to the publication of my @N2Sreports story about their situation.

https://twitter.com/VirginiaKekoas_/status/1774922638634205448

27) BIZARRE UPDATE: Yesterday, April 3, an obituary for Russell Richardson Vane IV appeared online, claiming he had died on March 11, 2024, the day after he was formally kicked out of the Virginia Kekoas.

However, some things struck me as odd.

legacy.com/us/obituaries/…

28) While the photo and family information are accurate, "Russell struggled with a disability that impacted his brain and perception of reality" is a bizarre line to include in an obituary, paired with no mention of his military service, which I've confirmed in court records.

29) Russell Vane IV aka Duke read Eddie Ray aka ICE's final message to him at 8:29am March 11, the day of his death per the obituary.

However, his Facebook profile picture (redaction mine) changed on April 1, the day of my reporting.

"So adorable!" wrote his mother Linda.

30) The obituary claims that memorial services were held at the PW Park on March 20th, and his ashes were placed near Chopawamsic Creek (behind Quantico).

A PW Park Ranger by phone confirmed no such ceremony occurred, although he couldn't rule out a family hiking to place ashes.

31) Minutes from the obituary's publication, one condolence occurred in the name "Pepe Montoya."

Duke had used the character of Pepe the frog as his avatar.

However, there was another "Pepe." See next tweet.

32) On December 5, Duke attempted to bring a new member into the group. ICE provided me with an additional screenshot including that person's number, calling him Pepe.

As a private citizen, I won't publicly ID him. However, I called him. See next tweet.

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1774776367877419169

33) I called Duke's friend (his real name is not Pepe) who confirmed "He's fine."

"He and I are very good friends, and if something happened, I would know."

He confirmed he's seen Duke alive since March 11.

(I recorded this call but will only share with other media).

34) Finally, I called the Virginia Northern District Medical Examiner's Office, who confirmed that no deceased person named Russell Richardson Vane IV had been examined by them, which would be necessary in an unexpected death in Vienna, Virginia.

35) In conclusion, it appears either Duke himself or someone else posted a false obituary claiming he died on the day of last contact with his former militia comrades.

Duke did not respond to my requests for comment.

web.archive.org/web/2024040317…

36) “Whatever you’re doing Duke, we are watching and we are aware, hopefully this will all end soon, and we can move on from this” writes ICE on Twitter following the addition of my reporting on an apparently false obituary.

https://twitter.com/vkice247/status/1775912990971134336

37) The obituary for Russell Vane IV now yields an error code. I've been frequently checking, this happened in the past hour or so:


An archived copy of the former (and apparently fake) obituary remains online here:
legacy.com/us/obituaries/…
web.archive.org/web/2024040317…

38) Let's go back in time.

In 2011, Russell Vane IV faced charges for allegedly bringing guns onto federal property in Maryland on November 3, 2010.

Vane's attorney told the court at the time he was "a reserve member of the United States Armed Forces."

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1775899096467046829

39) On November 3, 2010, according to Officer John Childs III of the The Federal Protective Service, Russell Richardson Vane arrived at Suitland Federal Center.

"Suspect Vane stated that he came for job interview and that he had three weapons inside his vehicle."

40) Then-Maryland US District Attorney Rod Rosenstein got involved in the case, but Prosecutor Hollis Weisman at the May 11, 2011 hearing told the judge they learned "that the defendant had been arrested and charged in a gun-related case in, I believe it was Fairfax County."

41) It appears Weisman was correct.

Russell Vane was apparently charged in Fairfax County for "shooting in a public place - no injuries" mere weeks after his other gun case began.

The outcome was nolle prosequi, charges dropped.

42) "The alleged possession of unloaded guns here by Mr. Vane, as an active member of the U.S. military reserve, and as a holder of a Virginia concealed carry permit, in the rear compartment area of his hatchback vehicle, squarely falls within the Second Amendment’s underlying principles of participation in militias, self-defense, and hunting," argued Vane's attorney on May 26, 2011.

43) Ultimately, in June 2011, Russell Vane pled guilty to a federal misdemeanor for bringing three guns onto federal property.

He received six months unsupervised probation, a $75 fine, and surrendered those three guns.

44) It was more than a decade from "active member of the U.S. military reserve" Russell Vane IV's federal guilty plea on misdemeanor gun charges to his entrance into the @VirginiaKekoas_ militia, allegedly claiming to be in the CIA.

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1774774312467108337

@VirginiaKekoas_ 45) Washington Post has released their feature story, which does a great job summarizing what we know so far.

They also have some new details, which I'd like to put onto this thread.

washingtonpost.com/national-secur…

@VirginiaKekoas_ 46) The Marine Corps confirmed that Vane served as an intel specialist for eight years, earning an Overseas Service Ribbon and Global War on Terror Service medal. He was a reservist, and left as a staff sergeant in 2017.

washingtonpost.com/national-secur…

47) WaPo came across a post from a decade ago referring to "Russell “Duke” Vane, a Marine who recently returned from deployment... a veteran working at Booz Allen."

Booz Allen Hamilton is a military/government/intelligence contractor.

linkedin.com/posts/booz-all…

48) WaPo confirmed much of my reporting that contradicts the suspicious, now-deleted obituary for Russell Vane.

They also managed to get someone with a male voice who answered Duke's phone and said “Duke killed himself. Could you just leave us alone?” before hanging up.

49) "Vane’s father is a data scientist and war game designer whose statements and published writings refer to a career in defense and intelligence work. He did not reply to a voice-mail message or email."

This, I'd like to expand on.

washingtonpost.com/national-secur…

50) Russell Richardson Vane III, Duke's father, had an accomplished career in the field of game theory and terrorism. His publications included:
-"Using hypergames to select plans in competitive environments" (2000)
-"Using Hypergames to Increase Planned Payoff and Reduce Risk" (2002)
-Agent-based simulation of geo-political conflict" (2004)
-"Planning for terrorist-caused emergencies" (2005)
dl.acm.org/profile/811000…

51) "The intelligence analysis task of anticipating crises and providing decision makers with reasonable (supportable, explainable) possible futures is extremely difficult. To perform this task, a team of analysts must consider the political, economic, and military aspects of national governments and non-governmental organizations. This paper describes an agent-based simulation framework, the Advanced Global Intelligence and Leadership Experiment (AGILE), for building executable models for conducting regional analysis."

dl.acm.org/doi/10.5555/15…

52) Former Congressman @SteveWorks4You posted a video on August 25, 2014 featuring Russell Vane III speaking about cybersecurity.

There, he was identified as a Data Scientist for geospatial intelligence company OGSystems.

@SteveWorks4You 53) "The FBI declined to comment on whether Vane was on the bureau’s radar."

washingtonpost.com/national-secur…

54) Duke has been arrested.

New thread begins here.

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1778934612095295555