Free Republic

COMMERCE, Texas - A woman was arrested over the weekend after police allegedly caught her "testing" homemade bombs following a string of fires in Commerce, authorities said. Since Feb. 19, police have been investigating a series of fires reported across the city over a three-day span. On Saturday night, a patrol officer spotted a fire at Centennial Park and observed a woman leaving the immediate area. Officers detained the woman, identified as Jamia Howell, and discovered nine homemade bombs inside her backpack. Investigators also recovered a lighter and other materials used to manufacture explosive devices. Howell was taken into custody...

An anti-ICE agitator stole an ambulance, packed it with gas cans and rammed the emergency vehicle into a DHS office in Meridian, Idaho. Meridian Police Chief Tracy Basterrechea said the suspect stole the ambulance from St. Luke’s Hospital and poured accelerant inside of the vehicle. “We want to emphasize that this was a serious criminal act,” Police Chief Basterrechea said. “The theft and destruction of an emergency vehicle not only created a risk to responding personnel, but it also temporarily removed a critical medical resource from the community,” he said. The police chief said “there has been a lot of...

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A verdict has been reached in the case of a Georgia woman who was murdered more than 25 years ago. Edrick Faust faced 12 felony charges related to the murder of UGA law student Tara Baker in January 2001 in Athens, Georgia. On Tuesday, Faust was convicted on the following charges: Count one - malice murder: GUILTY Count two - felony murder: GUILTY Count three - felony murder: GUILTY Count four - felony murder: GUILTY Count five - felony murder: GUILTY Count six - burglary: GUILTY Count seven - aggravated sodomy: GUILTY Count eight...

Bethesda, Maryland -- A former Laurel police chief on Friday was sentenced to 55 years in prison for setting three fires at two Clarksburg properties owned by his stepson and daughter-in-law between 2016 and 2020. David Michael Crawford, 74, of Ellicott City, is already serving two consecutive life sentences plus 75 years for similar crimes he committed in Howard County. He is also implicated in several other arsons across Anne Arundel, Charles, Frederick and Prince George’s counties between 2011 and 2020, according to prosecutors. The fires targeted people known to Crawford and his wife, including several of Crawford’s former coworkers...

A woman was seen trying to set fire to a South Kansas City warehouse on Thursday, the same site that had been proposed as a possible immigration detention center. Video from our crew shows the woman igniting window areas at the building and flames briefly flaring up. KMBC reporter Andy Alcock said he witnessed the woman throw what appeared to be a liquid onto the windows before the fire started. Grandview firefighters responded and put out the flames. No injuries were reported. The warehouse has been the focus of protests and public concern after reports surfaced that it could be...

NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas – A woman has been arrested in connection with an investigation into arson at the Comal County Republican Headquarters, according to the City of New Braunfels. Grace Carol Brown, 21, was taken into custody on Thursday for burglary of a building and arson, a news release said. She was later booked into the Comal County jail on a $200,000 bond. New Braunfels police officers and fire officials had responded around 1:15 p.m. on Jan. 14 to the Comal County Republican Headquarters, located in the 200 block of Landa Street. The release said that employees found that...

A fire heavily damaged Mississippi’s largest synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship in northeast Jackson that the Ku Klux Klan bombed in 1967 because the rabbi supported civil rights. The Jackson Fire Department, the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested a suspect Saturday night in the latest blaze after the fire department ruled it arson, according to chief fire investigator Charles Felton. Investigators did not immediately release the name of the suspect or the charges the person could face. The fire was reported shortly after 3 a.m. at Beth Israel...

A suspected arson attack has caused a widespread power cut in Berlin since Saturday. Authorities said on Sunday that it was a result of a politically motivated attack by “left-wing extremists". Around 45,000 households were left without electricity in southwest Berlin after high-voltage power lines were damaged by a fire, which authorities have described as a politically motivated attack by far-left extremists. Though power has been restored in some areas, thousands could be left without power until Thursday after what authorities say was a politically motivated attack by “left-wing extremists”. The blaze erupted on a cable bridge over the Teltow...

We’ve seen plenty of leftist violence in America in recent times, but we are hardly immune. Across the Pond, in Berlin, Germany, they’re finding out just how damaging crazed anarchists can be when they put their minds to it. To wit, a far-left pro-environmental organization called the Vulkan group claimed responsibility for an attack on the power grid that has left thousands of residents without electricity for days — even as freezing temperatures engulf the region.According to the newspaper Berlin Zeitung, the group posted a 4,163-word letter saying they did it to protest the energy industry, adding that they targeted...

Antifa militants are circulating a guide that describes how to destroy domestic infrastructure by creating incendiary devices. Journalist Andy Ngo drew attention to the guide in a post on Twitter. “Antifa accounts are sharing a guide on how to make incendiary devices that will burn cables used in infrastructure, like on train tracks,” Ngo posted. “Antifa and anarchist extremists believe that domestic terrorist attacks must be used to destabilize and destroy the state.” Ngo’s post included a photo of an Antifa account, Anarchist Federation News, that was circulating the guide. Since Trump’s return to the White House, it’s become clear...

Last night, the San Francisco chapter was set on fire. During the final Shabbat of the semester—while students and staff were inside preparing for services—an attempted antisemitic mass-casualty attack was carried out at a Jewish building in San Francisco. Police have confirmed it was arson: a suspect arrested, significant damage done, the building shut down, and Shabbat and Chanukah events canceled. This is the inevitable consequence the moment campus quads were allowed to morph into open-air terror rallies, from the moment chants for intifada were tolerated and even encouraged, and from the moment administrators decided calls for Jewish death qualified...

A trans-identifying man with an extensive arrest history was charged arson after setting fire to his own apartment during a standoff with police following a robbery, according to news reports. This gem, who was charged with setting fire to his mother’s apartment in 2022, while the woman was inside, also once asked on a Facebook post, “May I start burning Churches yet?” independent journalist Andy Ngo reported. Nathan Herbert Click — who now goes by the name Cassidy Mal Lyss (get it, “malice?”) — was arrested on the morning of Nov. 10 in Stillwater, Oklahoma, after a report of robbery,...

A person was in custody Tuesday after a woman was set on fire while riding a CTA Blue Line in Chicago's Loop the night before. The woman remained in the hospital late Tuesday afternoon. According to Chicago police, the 26-year-old woman got into a quarrel with a 45-year-old man while on a train at the Clark/Lake subway station around 9:25 p.m. Police said the fight escalated when the man poured a liquid on the woman and set her on fire. Sources said the liquid the man poured was gasoline. Police said the woman ran off the train and collapsed on...

Europe is facing a growing wave of anti-Christian violence, with Germany recording the highest number of arson attacks in 2024. According to the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe), a total of 2,211 anti-Christian offenses were documented across the continent, including 274 personal attacks involving physical violence and threats. Analysts warn that these figures reflect a climate of growing intolerance that affects local communities in concrete ways. While Europe saw a slight decrease from 2,444 offenses in 2023, OIDAC Europe attributes this to incomplete data collection. Serious incidents included the fatal November 2024 attack on...

Cody Balmer pleaded guilty to all counts, including attempted first-degree murder, dozens of arson-related charges, and terrorism The suspect in the arson of the Pennsylvania governor's mansion in April pleaded guilty to all charges on Tuesday.Cody Balmer, 38, of Harrisburg, appeared in person for the court proceeding, which started around 8:30 am Eastern Time at the Dauphin County Courthouse in Harrisburg, local news outlet WHP reported.Balmer pleaded guilty to all counts, including attempted first-degree murder, dozens of arson-related charges, and terrorism.Balmer called 911 on the night of the arson and admitted to setting fire to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's...

The Palisades Bowl mobile home park remains debris-covered, nine months after the fire and months after the neighboring park was cleaned FEMA denied cleanup services, arguing it couldn’t trust that the land owners, with a history of attempting to redevelop the park into something more lucrative, would let residents rebuild Former residents are running out of insurance money and aid to pay for temporary housing, still with no clear path home. As local and state leaders celebrate the fastest wildfire debris removal in modern American history, the Pacific Palisades Bowl Mobile Home Estates — a rent-controlled, 170-unit enclave off Pacific...

The historic Thurn und Taxis hunting lodge was burned down on Monday morning. Lappersdorf Volunteer Fire Department.German police are investigating whether far-left extremists from Antifa were behind a massive fire that destroyed the historic Thurn und Taxis hunting lodge near Regensburg, Bavaria earlier this week. The fire, which broke out in the early hours of Monday, reduced the 19th-century building to its outer walls and caused damage estimated at around €4 million. Authorities confirmed that a statement claiming responsibility for the arson has been posted on the far-left online platform Indymedia. The message, signed by an “Antifa Kommando,” described the...

“The alleged pyromaniac accused of igniting the deadly Palisades Fire – Los Angeles’ most destructive wildfire – chipped in a tiny donation to Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign, records show. Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, shelled out $2 to hybrid PAC ActBlue on two separate occasions just days apart in 2020 – $1 on Sept. 4 and another buck on Sept. 11, according to the Federal Election Commission. Records also show the alleged arsonist — born in France — was registered to vote in Florida, though he never declared a political party.”

Authorities in California charged a 29-year-old man with "malicious destruction' for allegedly starting a deadly fire that erupted into the most destructive blaze in Los Angeles history and destroyed much of the wealthy Pacific Palisades neighborhood, officials announced Wednesday. Federal law enforcement officials accused 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht of lighting a fire on New Year’s Day that was initially extinguished by fire crews, but continued to smolder underground before reigniting during high winds, acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said during a news conference. Rinderknecht was arrested Tuesday in Florida, where he moved after the fire, and is due to appear in...

Authorities have arrested a 29-year-old Uber driver in connection to the investigation into the deadly January Palisades Fire. Jonathan Rinderknecht, of Melbourne, Florida, was arrested Tuesday near his home on suspicion of destruction of property by means of fire. If convicted as charged, Rinderknecht faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 20 years in federal prison. "He is charged with starting a fire on Jan. 1," Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said. "It did take a week to reignite, but he is charged with starting the Palisades Fire." The criminal complaint covers the damages and death...