Posted on 12/01/2020 9:53:35 PM PST by grundle
Seattle – Two people arrested on the BNSF Railway tracks near Bellingham, Whatcom County, were charged with terrorist attack and other violence against a railroad carrier, and appeared in federal court today, announced U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran. Samantha Brooks, 27, and Ellen Reiche, 23, both of Bellingham, Washington, were arrested Saturday night in Bellingham as they allegedly placed a ‘shunt’ on the tracks. A shunt disrupts the low level electrical current on the tracks and can disable various safety features.
“Since January there have been 41 incidents of shunts placed on the BNSF tracks in Whatcom and Skagit counties—causing crossing guards to malfunction, interfering with automatic breaking systems, and, in one case, causing the near-derailment of tanks of hazardous chemicals,” said U.S. Attorney Moran. “These crimes endanger our community. I commend the agents from Customs and Border Protection, FBI, BNSF Police, and state and local partners who prioritized stopping this criminal conduct.”
According to the criminal complaint, the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force has been investigating the placement of shunts on the BNSF tracks since January 19, 2020. The shunt is comprised of wire and magnets that are stretched between the tracks, disrupting the systems that indicate a train is on the tracks. On ten occasions, shunts were placed in areas that disrupt the crossing guards where the tracks cross streets, so vehicles could have tried to cross the tracks unaware of the oncoming train. On the night of October 11, 2020, multiple shunts were placed in three different locations in Whatcom and Skagit Counties. The shunts triggered an automatic breaking system on a train that was transporting hazardous and combustible material. The emergency breaking then caused a portion of the train to decouple from the engine. Decoupling has the potential to cause a derailment—in this case—of tanker cars of flammable gas in a residential area.
Shortly after the first shunts were discovered in January, a claim of responsibility was published on an anarchist website.
“This claim of responsibility stated that the shunting activity was carried out in solidarity with Native American tribes in Canada seeking to prevent the construction of an oil pipeline across British Columbia, and with the express goal of disrupting BNSF operations and supplies for the pipeline,” says the complaint.
HEAVY reported: Ellen Reiche works as a mentor for Wild Whatcom, which engages children and their families in year-round nature programs. She’s also worked as a naturalist for Outer Island Excursions in Anacortes Washington, as a ski instructor for Mt. Baker Ski Area in Bellingham, as a senior park aide for the State of Washington at Sucia Island State Park, as a dining hall worker with Aramark, as a quality control technician for Enfield Farms, as a transplanter for Cascade cuts Wholesale Nursery, and as a deputy field organizer for Washington State Democrats.
On Saturday night, November 28, 2020, BNSF Police observed video surveillance of two people kneeling on the tracks near a crossing in Bellingham. Whatcom County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene. They were detained for trespassing, and a shunt was found on the tracks near where they had been observed on surveillance. The defendants had a paper bag containing wire, a drill with a brush head, and rubber gloves. The wire was similar to the wire used in the shunting incidents. The shunt that was placed on the tracks would have interfered with the railroad crossing guard at Cliffside Drive in Bellingham.
Terrorist attack on a railroad facility is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Convict and execute.
Don’t mess with railroad bulls.
You really don’t want to mess with the railroads, they have their own GESTAPO.
“This claim of responsibility stated that the shunting activity was carried out in solidarity with Native American tribes in Canada seeking to prevent the construction of an oil pipeline across British Columbia, and with the express goal of disrupting BNSF operations and supplies for the pipeline,” says the complaint.
Shut down the pipeline, and the oil will be shipped via.....
rail tanker cars.
Which, as they prove, are more vulnerable to problems than a pipeline.
Or, execute all terrorists and eliminate recidivism and serve as a warning to others that might like to follow their path.

Strange that they have so much information on the younger woman (Ellen Reiche) but nothing about the older woman (Samantha Brooks).
I used to attend a boarding academy in Arkansas in high school.
Some of the students put things on the railroad tracks. The
real kicker was when someone shot a window on the train with
a 22.
The FBI swooped in and interviewed a number of kids over it.
Not sure our kids did it, because you don’t have a 22 with
you at boarding school.
Scared a years worth of life out of some of the kids.
It's "braking," not "breaking." They're talking about the brakes on the train. Get an editor. Sheesh.
My dad had a project he worked on near some railway tracks. As kids we would be down there “helping”. We’d spend time near the tracks and put pennies on the track.
For a fourth grader that was risky business. We were sure the police were going to catch us for tampering with the railway AND defacing money!
I wish election fraud was dealt with so promptly under Terrorism laws like this railroad situation .
Yeah, we used to do that too.
As I kid, you think they’re out to get you. Smile...
After I saw that a second time, I gave up reading. These folks are too stupid to differentiate homonyms, they are too stupid for me to read their crayon scribblings.
Stupid, evil white women. I’m sure they support Antifa and Black Lies Matter too.
“ I wish election fraud was dealt with so promptly under Terrorism laws like this railroad situation .”
BNSF railroad is owned by Warren Buffett. Crimes against the property of Democrat billionaires are considered serious by the authorities.
Serious fed pen time for these two saboteurs, such as 10-20 or more for each act of terrorism - possession and use of weapons of MASS DESTRUCTION, disrupting federal transportation systems, etc.
Offer them 20 years if they provide the names and suppliers/training of their weapons. If not, sentence them on each and every count with no parole until after 20 years.
Throw the book at them.
Bellingham is 90 miles north of Seattle
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