On Thursday, the FBI, the Justice Department and the Alaska State Troopers announced charges against members of a white supremacist gang calling themselves the "1488s," which operate inside Alaska state prisons and in two other states:
In a recently unsealed indictment, Filthy Fuhrer, (formerly Timothy Lobdell), 42; Roy Naughton, aka "Thumper," 40; Glen Baldwin, aka "Glen Dog," 37; Craig King, aka "Oakie," 53; Beau Cook, 32; and Colter O'Dell, 26, have each been charged with murder in aid of racketeering, kidnapping in aid of racketeering, assault in aid of racketeering, kidnapping, and conspiracy to commit assault and kidnapping in aid of racketeering. Two other key members, Nicholas M. Kozorra, aka "Beast," 29, and Dustin J. Clowers, 34, previously pleaded guilty to murder in aid of racketeering in recently unsealed court documents."The defendants allegedly participated in the heinous murder of Michael Staton, with the goal of impressing their vile and racist gang," said Assistant Attorney General [Brian] Benczkowski. "The Criminal Division is committed to bringing the 1488s to justice, and holding accountable those who further its agenda of violence and hatred."
"1488" is a significant number in white supremacist parlance. It derives from the "fourteen words," a racist rallying cry that reads "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children," and from "88," which converted into the letters of the alphabet, HH, stands for "Heil Hitler."
Last month, the FBI busted another neo-Nazi group in Arkansas, calling themselves the New Aryan Empire, for acts including kidnapping and attempted murder of an informant.
White supremacist and extreme right-wing violence has grown since the election of President Donald Trump, accounting for all extremist murders in America in 2018. These sorts of domestic terrorists have been the focus of public attention ever since the 2017 "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville that featured Tiki-torch waving Nazis chanting "Jews will not replace us!" and ended with a vehicle ramming attack that killed a local woman.