Share this page!

Enter URL or ID to Unroll

You can paste full URL like: https://x.com/threadreaderapp/status/1644127596119195649
or just the ID like: 1644127596119195649

How to get URL link on X (Twitter) App

  1. On the Twitter thread, click on or icon on the bottom
  2. Click again on or Share Via icon
  3. Click on Copy Link to Tweet
  4. Paste it above and click "Unroll Thread"!
  5. More info at Twitter Help
Ford Fischer Profile picture
@FordFischer
Apr 12, 2024 • 19 tweets • 14 min read • Read on X
Scrolly
BREAKING THREAD: On April 11, Russell Vane IV - the subject of my reporting who allegedly attempted to provoke a Virginia militia group into producing explosives - was arrested.

He is charged with "Attempted production of a biological agent or toxin."


Image
2) According to the criminal complaint, the FBI received multiple tips after I published the story about Vane - who went by Duke - on April 1.

He apparently tried to legally change his name on April 3, the same day a false obituary of him appeared.

Image
3) The feds cite my reporting, where I show unclassified government documents that the Virginia Kekoas militia members were allegedly handed by Duke, and he later appears to acknowledge giving them.






Image
Image
4) The FBI says they learned "In coordination with one government agency" that Duke had printed off the documents on February 12 "Based on government records."

This appears to imply Vane has a job at the "government agency" or at least he has work access to government files. Image
5) The documents were allegedly printed as early as February 12 before being given to the militia on March 9.

A big mystery: Why, on February 27, did Duke appear to claim someone else had been arrested for doing the same?


Image
6) So, apparently, feds raided Russell Richardson Vane IV aka Duke's house, where they allegedly found evidence that he was extracting ricin, a toxic poison, and arrested him.

Image
Image
Image
7) Vane is currently in federal custody and faces a detention hearing on Monday.

As I previously reported, he is definitely not dead, as claimed by an obituary and someone on his phone talking to @HannahAllam.




Image
Image
Image
8) To reiterate: According to this federal criminal complaint, Vane printed documents about explosives from "his work computer" and walked out of "a secure government facility" with them and handed them to a militia group.

Image
9) While I'm not aware of any elements of the story taking place in Washington DC itself, it appears this arrest was conducted by a Joint Terrorism Task Force out of the Washington DC (not Virginia) field office. Image
10) Side note: Duke has an account on Airbnb, where he lists five places for rent.

"Lives in Vienna, VA"

"I'm obsessed with: Chemistry"

"Ask Duke about Shooting sports"

"My biography title: Read This Vainglorious Thing"

airbnb.com/users/show/125…Image
Image
Image
Image
11) I need to reiterate: My story came out April 1.

On April 3, an obituary for Russell Vane IV appeared online.

That same day, Vane walked into a courthouse alive and allegedly attempted to legally change his name.

12) At the moment, which "government facility" Russell Vane IV worked at is unclear, but here's the federal connections I can point out for him and his father (Russell Vane III):

-He was once a Marine Intel Specialist ()

-He then worked at Booz Allen Hamilton, a military/government/intelligence contractor. ()

-He allegedly told the militia he worked for the CIA ()

-He later insinuated to the group that he worked at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) or United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (NGIF)

-He provided the group documents marked as coming from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and NGA

-His father Russell "Russ" Vane III worked as a Data Scientist for geospatial intelligence company OGSystems () and his Facebook says "Worked at DHS" (Department of Homeland Security) ()

-Vane IV has now been arrested by the FBI.





facebook.com/russ.vaneImage
Image
"A whole lot of houses burning and going kaboom. I wonder if some subversive force has released some literature and is encouraging these explosions?"

-Duke allegedly weeks after leaving his job at a secure government facility with bomb making documents.

These words were allegedly spoken by Duke less than a month after allegedly walking out of a “secure government facility” per the federal affidavit with explosives-related documents printed from his work computer.
15) I missed one federal agency Duke has apparently been affiliated with: Russell R Vane IV is listed as staff at the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) in their 2007 publication Survey of Current Business.

google.com/books/edition/…Image
16) Ironically, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Vane/Duke's employer in 2007, moved to the Suitland Federal Center in 2016.

This is the same facility Vane pled guilty to bringing guns into for a job interview in 2010.



bizjournals.com/washington/bre…
17) NEW: A LinkedIn profile appearing to portray Russell Vane IV exists online titled "Russell V" allegedly with a TS/SCI clearance.

This profile says he has worked at Deloitte since 2015, where he has "Briefed multiple intelligence agencies."

linkedin.com/in/russell-v-3…



Image
Image
Image
Image
18) The Linkedin says Vane/Duke previously worked at OGSystems (the same workplace as his father at the time ) and Booz Allen Hamilton ().

Both of these are consistent with my and @HannahAllam's prior reporting.

Image
@HannahAllam 19) The LinkedIn also describes him performing "Classified Intelligence Analyst Work" with the Marine Corps at Quantico (consistent with ) and Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) (consistent with my reporting as well ).

Image

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with Ford Fischer

Ford Fischer Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @FordFischer

Ford Fischer Profile picture
Jan 10
VIDEO THREAD: Activists dressed as contractors took down a banner outside the National Archives in Washington DC this morning and replaced it with their own demanding Biden publish the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) into the Constitution before leaving office.

The activists brought two additional banners which they had also planned to put up in the place of existing ones, but police arrived and confiscated them before the group could get those two up.
2) Kamala Lopez, founder and president of Equal Means Equal, explained that the ERA has already been ratified by 38 states, so she insists that Biden can be a "hero" by publishing it into the Constitution to be enforced.

Without doing this, she calls Biden a "zero."
3) Responding officers told the activists to sit down on the sidewalk and disputed whether their truck had been legally parked.

Additional activists arrived dressed as women from the science-fiction Dune series to advocate for the Equal Rights Amendment.
Read 7 tweets
Ford Fischer Profile picture
Jan 5
VIDEO THREAD: Craig Sicknick, brother of Brian Sicknick who died of a stroke the day after fighting on January 6, 2021, spoke at a rally demanding Congress refuse to certify Trump's electoral victory on January 6, 2025.

"I came here today to urge Congress to do its job and block Mr Trump from taking office just a few short weeks from now," Sicknick said.

"They can do this by upholding their oath of office and acting under Article III of the 13th Amendment which clearly states that no person who was involved in trying to overthrow our government can hold any office, state or federal."
2) @JessicaDenson07, a 2017 campaign staffer for Trump who ultimately sued him, is an organizer of this weekend's rallies demanding Congress block him from retaking the White House.

"Donald Trump is an adjudicated insurrectionist disqualified and the only mechanism to remove that disability is by a 2/3 vote of both houses. That's it. We don't need new legislation," she said.

"It only takes 1/5 of both houses of congress... to raise an objection and a simple majority to sustain it!"

She says there was "mixed" reception as she and others lobbies for this idea to members of Congress.
3) "Congresspeople, keep us safe, Hallelujah!" sang protesters demanding Congress block Trump from the White House on January 6.

"Do your duty to the states, Hallelujah!"

"Insurrectionists can't be president!" they chanted. "Call your representatives!"
Read 6 tweets
Ford Fischer Profile picture
Jan 4
Now: Anti-Trump protesters gather at the Lincoln Memorial to demand Congress block Trump’s January 6, 2025 certification for being an “Insurrectionist” over his actions on January 6, 2021.
“Insurrectionists can’t be president, call your representatives!” chant protesters on the National Mall.
THREAD
Read 4 tweets
Ford Fischer Profile picture
Dec 31, 2024
BIG THREAD: Today, I attended the preliminary/detention hearing for Brad Spafford, charged with possessing a short barrel rifle.

Federal prosecutors say more charges are coming and that his arrest yielded the "largest seizure of finished explosive devices in FBI history." Image
Image
Image
Image
2) I first reported the case December 19 following Spafford's arrest by the feds, who used a Confidential Human Source (CHS) for two years to get the warrant to arrest Spafford for the alleged Short Barrel Rifle.

3) Rachelann Cardwell, a Suffolk Detective assigned as an officer on the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, took the stand today.

She testified that the investigation into Spafford began in January 2023 when the CHS reported Spafford disfiguring his hand with a homemade explosive.

(Photo: Suffolk PD)Image
Image
Image
Read 23 tweets
Ford Fischer Profile picture
Dec 19, 2024
THREAD: On Tuesday, Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) officers with the Norfolk FBI and assistance from the ATF arrested Virginia man Brad Spafford for possessing an unregistered short barrel rifle (SBR).

The arrest was the result of a multi-year Confidential Human Source (CHS). Image
Image
2) A Confidential Human Source (CHS, commonly known as "informant" or colloquially as "snitch") reported in January 2023 that Spafford lost fingers on Independence Day 2021 "while working with a homemade explosive device."

He says Spafford and friends were making ammunition for "something that Spafford would not be able to do alone."

The informant reportedly saw Spafford's hands "before and after the event" which is confusingly worded; if he saw them in person, then the informant has been around the defendant for more than three years.

If he saw them pre- disfigurement some other way, like a photo, then he still has been around him for at least nearly two years.Image
3) In May 2023, the informant and Spafford went to a gun range together, each with "their own weapons."

The informant brought his own Short Barrel Rifle, but it was registered.

The now-defendant allegedly brought what the informant believed was also an SBR. Image
Read 7 tweets
Ford Fischer Profile picture
Oct 30, 2024
Just now: Attendees of Vice President Kamala Harris’s rally at the Ellipse resort to climbing over the “scale proof” fences surrounding the event after exit gates were closed, apparently due to pro-Palestine protesters on the other side.
2) "Push it down!"

During some of the confusion as police wouldn't allow people to leave the Harris Ellipse speech, some pushed over a small plastic fence that divided them from other people also trying to exit.

It didn't make a difference.
3) "You say it's open but where's it open?" crowds frustrated attempted to confront police as they had difficulty leaving the Harris rally.

"No! No! No!" a cop said as a man jumped, leaving a woman with him behind, who would have had to find a not-closed gate.

Meanwhile, police attempted to confine the pro-Palestine protests outside.
Read 7 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

Send Email!

:(