Hince the "Moors".
23 and me category -- percent Moorish
Hince the "Moors".
23 and me category -- percent Moorish
The Daily Plane Website article (thedailyplane.com)
A bizarre incident is playing out Saturday morning in Wakefield, Massachusetts. Local police are saying that "during a motor vehicle stop, several heavily armed men claiming to be from a group that does not recognize our laws exited their vehicles and fled into the woodline" near I-95.
"Approximately 8 males fled into the woods carrying rifles and handguns and appear to be contained in the wooded area adjacent to the highway," the Wakefield Police Department said in a statement. "No threats were made, but these men should be considered armed and dangerous."
Massachusetts State Police, who are also on the scene, tweeted early Saturday: "We have several armed persons accounted for at this scene on Rt 95. They are refusing to comply with orders to provide their information and put down their weapons. We are asking residents of Wakefield and Reading to shelter in place at this time."- #Wakefield Wakefield .
This team may be late to their FF
9 people in custody after hourslong armed standoff on I-95 (yourcentralvalley.com)
WAKEFIELD, Mass. (AP) — An hourslong standoff with a group of heavily armed men that partially shut down Interstate 95 ended Saturday with nine suspects in custody, Massachusetts state police said.
Police said the suspects include two people who were arrested earlier on Saturday.
The standoff shut down a portion of I-95 for much of the morning, causing major traffic problems during the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Authorities said the southbound interstate reopened, but northbound lanes remain closed.
In Massachusetts, Interstate 95 runs from the Rhode Island line, around Boston to the New Hampshire line. Wakefield is just east of where Interstate 95 and 93 meet north of Boston.
The standoff began around 2 a.m. when police noticed two cars pulled over on I-95 with hazard lights on after they had apparently run out of fuel, authorities said at a Saturday press briefing.
Between eight to 10 men were clad in military-style gear with long guns and pistols, Mass State Police Col. Christopher Mason said. He added that they were headed to Maine from Rhode Island for “training.”
The men refused to put down their weapons or comply with authorities’ orders, claiming to be from a group “that does not recognize our laws” before taking off into a wooded area, police said.
Police said they used negotiators to interact with the other suspects.
Mason said the “self-professed leader” of the group wanted it to be known that they are not antigovernment.
“I think the investigation that follows from this interaction will provide us more insight into what their motivation, what their ideology is,” Mason said.
In a video posted to social media Saturday morning, a man who did not give his name, but said he was from a group called Rise of the Moors, broadcast from Interstate 95 in Wakefield near exit 57.
“We are not antigovernment. We are not anti-police, we are not sovereign citizens, we’re not Black identity extremists,” said the man who appeared to be wearing military-style equipment. “As specified multiple times to the police that we are abiding by the peaceful journey laws of the United States.”
The website for the group says they are “Moorish Americans dedicated to educating new Moors and influencing our Elders.”
Mason said he had no knowledge of the group, but it was not unusual for the state police to encounter people who have “sovereign citizen ideology,” although he did not know if the people involved in the Wakefield standoff was a part of that.
“We train to those encounters,” Mason said. “We very much understand, I guess, the philosophy that underlies that mindset.”
Residents in Wakefield and Reading near where the standoff is taking place have been asked to shelter in place.
Wakefield police said in its statement that no threats had been made but the men were considered armed and dangerous.
Rise of the Moors (riseofthemoors.org)
A cadre of armed men from a militia group called the Rise of the Moors shut down a highway outside of Boston for more than nine hours on Saturday morning after allegedly refusing to comply with police orders and taking off into the woods with guns.
The group says on their website that they’re “Moorish Americans dedicated to educating new Moors and influencing our Elders” and, in YouTube videos of the incident, they claimed they were only trying to travel peacefully to their “private land” to camp and “train” on Saturday. CBS Boston reported that they were headed from Rhode Island to Maine.
According to Massachusetts State Police, a trooper saw two cars on the side of the highway at about 2 a.m. with hazard lights on, attempting to add gas to their tanks.
When the officer stopped to assist, they noticed the men were wearing military gear and had a lot of guns. The trooper asked for driver’s licenses and gun licenses but the men allegedly refused to provide any, and refused to put down their weapons. The trooper called for backup but some of the men fled, police said.
In a livestream video on the group’s YouTube page, titled “Peaceful,” a member of the militia, dressed in camo gear, said they were traveling with gas tanks to refuel their cars so they could avoid “making any unnecessary stops” that might “alert or alarm the public.”
He claimed they had not violated any laws as they were legally allowed to own guns in the state from which they traveled.
He claimed they had asked officers to explain what their probable cause was, and a sergeant allegedly said he did not know.
“We do not intend to be hostile, we do not intend to be aggressive,” he said, adding that they are not “anti-police” or “Black-identity extremists.”
“Our nation has a treaty with your government,” the man said, gesturing to another man standing on the highway, holding what looked to be a Moroccan flag.
“We’re not anti-government, we’re not anti-police and we’re willing to give them any information they need so that way we can continue with our peaceful journey,” he continued.
The Southern Poverty Law Center says that several organizations and individuals have identified with the Moorish sovereign citizen movement in the U.S. since the 1990s. The movement is associated with the anti-government sovereign citizens movement, and some Moorish sovereigns have come into conflict with government agencies over their refusal to obey laws. They believe that African Americans “constitute an elite class within American society with special rights,” SPLC writes.
“Their self-professed leader wanted very much known their ideology is not anti-government,” State Police Col. Christopher Mason said in a Saturday morning briefing.
A section of I-95 was closed in both directions and a shelter in place order was issued for residents in Wakefield and Reading. Large trucks were also brought in to block the highway, and road spikes were deployed.
“We continue to engage the suspects in conversation in an effort to de-escalate the situation on 95 and bring it to a peaceful end,” state police said in a tweet at 9:30 a.m. EDT.
By Saturday afternoon, following a nine-hour standoff that police called “highly dynamic and evolving,” all 11 members had been taken into custody without injury, and the highway had been reopened, police said.
In a press conference after the incident ended, Mason said the State Police will work with the District Attorney’s Office and “appropriate charges” will be brought against the 11 men.
“You can imagine, 11 armed individuals standing with long guns slung on an interstate highway certainly raises concerns and is not consistent with the firearms laws that we have here in Massachusetts,” he said.
He said the men did not have gun licenses on them. Either way, he said, Massachusetts does not allow for the carrying of an unloaded or loaded gun on an interstate highway.
“I understand that they have a different perspective on that,” he said.
He said he was unclear about what the group’s intent was in traveling on the highway, including whether it was “staged” to draw the attention of police.
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said they were told the men were on their way to Maine from Rhode Island for “training” but investigators had not confirmed it.
[The Daily Plane Website article](https://www.thedailyplane.com/massachusetts-police-responding-to-group-of-heavily-armed-men-claiming-to-not-recognize-our-laws/)
A bizarre incident is playing out Saturday morning in Wakefield, Massachusetts. Local police are saying that "during a motor vehicle stop, several heavily armed men claiming to be from a group that does not recognize our laws exited their vehicles and fled into the woodline" near I-95.
"Approximately 8 males fled into the woods carrying rifles and handguns and appear to be contained in the wooded area adjacent to the highway," the Wakefield Police Department said in a statement. "No threats were made, but these men should be considered armed and dangerous."
Massachusetts State Police, who are also on the scene, tweeted early Saturday: "We have several armed persons accounted for at this scene on Rt 95. They are refusing to comply with orders to provide their information and put down their weapons. We are asking residents of Wakefield and Reading to shelter in place at this time."- #Wakefield Wakefield .
This team may be late to their **FF**
[9 people in custody after hourslong armed standoff on I-95 ](https://www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/heavily-armed-men-standoff-with-massachusetts-police/)
WAKEFIELD, Mass. (AP) — An hourslong standoff with a group of heavily armed men that partially shut down Interstate 95 ended Saturday with nine suspects in custody, Massachusetts state police said.
Police said the suspects include two people who were arrested earlier on Saturday.
The standoff shut down a portion of I-95 for much of the morning, causing major traffic problems during the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Authorities said the southbound interstate reopened, but northbound lanes remain closed.
In Massachusetts, Interstate 95 runs from the Rhode Island line, around Boston to the New Hampshire line. Wakefield is just east of where Interstate 95 and 93 meet north of Boston.
The standoff began around 2 a.m. when police noticed two cars pulled over on I-95 with hazard lights on after they had apparently run out of fuel, authorities said at a Saturday press briefing.
Between eight to 10 men were clad in military-style gear with long guns and pistols, Mass State Police Col. Christopher Mason said. He added that they were headed to Maine from Rhode Island for “training.”
The men refused to put down their weapons or comply with authorities’ orders, claiming to be from a group “that does not recognize our laws” before taking off into a wooded area, police said.
Police said they used negotiators to interact with the other suspects.
Mason said the “self-professed leader” of the group wanted it to be known that they are not antigovernment.
“I think the investigation that follows from this interaction will provide us more insight into what their motivation, what their ideology is,” Mason said.
In a video posted to social media Saturday morning, a man who did not give his name, but said he was from a group called Rise of the Moors, broadcast from Interstate 95 in Wakefield near exit 57.
“We are not antigovernment. We are not anti-police, we are not sovereign citizens, we’re not Black identity extremists,” said the man who appeared to be wearing military-style equipment. “As specified multiple times to the police that we are abiding by the peaceful journey laws of the United States.”
The website for the group says they are “Moorish Americans dedicated to educating new Moors and influencing our Elders.”
Mason said he had no knowledge of the group, but it was not unusual for the state police to encounter people who have “sovereign citizen ideology,” although he did not know if the people involved in the Wakefield standoff was a part of that.
“We train to those encounters,” Mason said. “We very much understand, I guess, the philosophy that underlies that mindset.”
Residents in Wakefield and Reading near where the standoff is taking place have been asked to shelter in place.
Wakefield police said in its statement that no threats had been made but the men were considered armed and dangerous.
[Rise of the Moors](http://www.riseofthemoors.org/)
A cadre of armed men from a militia group called the Rise of the Moors shut down a highway outside of Boston for more than nine hours on Saturday morning after allegedly refusing to comply with police orders and taking off into the woods with guns.
The group says on their website that they’re “Moorish Americans dedicated to educating new Moors and influencing our Elders” and, in YouTube videos of the incident, they claimed they were only trying to travel peacefully to their “private land” to camp and “train” on Saturday. CBS Boston reported that they were headed from Rhode Island to Maine.
According to Massachusetts State Police, a trooper saw two cars on the side of the highway at about 2 a.m. with hazard lights on, attempting to add gas to their tanks.
When the officer stopped to assist, they noticed the men were wearing military gear and had a lot of guns. The trooper asked for driver’s licenses and gun licenses but the men allegedly refused to provide any, and refused to put down their weapons. The trooper called for backup but some of the men fled, police said.
In a livestream video on the group’s YouTube page, titled “Peaceful,” a member of the militia, dressed in camo gear, said they were traveling with gas tanks to refuel their cars so they could avoid “making any unnecessary stops” that might “alert or alarm the public.”
He claimed they had not violated any laws as they were legally allowed to own guns in the state from which they traveled.
He claimed they had asked officers to explain what their probable cause was, and a sergeant allegedly said he did not know.
“We do not intend to be hostile, we do not intend to be aggressive,” he said, adding that they are not “anti-police” or “Black-identity extremists.”
“Our nation has a treaty with your government,” the man said, gesturing to another man standing on the highway, holding what looked to be a Moroccan flag.
“We’re not anti-government, we’re not anti-police and we’re willing to give them any information they need so that way we can continue with our peaceful journey,” he continued.
The Southern Poverty Law Center says that several organizations and individuals have identified with the Moorish sovereign citizen movement in the U.S. since the 1990s. The movement is associated with the anti-government sovereign citizens movement, and some Moorish sovereigns have come into conflict with government agencies over their refusal to obey laws. They believe that African Americans “constitute an elite class within American society with special rights,” SPLC writes.
“Their self-professed leader wanted very much known their ideology is not anti-government,” State Police Col. Christopher Mason said in a Saturday morning briefing.
A section of I-95 was closed in both directions and a shelter in place order was issued for residents in Wakefield and Reading. Large trucks were also brought in to block the highway, and road spikes were deployed.
“We continue to engage the suspects in conversation in an effort to de-escalate the situation on 95 and bring it to a peaceful end,” state police said in a tweet at 9:30 a.m. EDT.
By Saturday afternoon, following a nine-hour standoff that police called “highly dynamic and evolving,” all 11 members had been taken into custody without injury, and the highway had been reopened, police said.
In a press conference after the incident ended, Mason said the State Police will work with the District Attorney’s Office and “appropriate charges” will be brought against the 11 men.
“You can imagine, 11 armed individuals standing with long guns slung on an interstate highway certainly raises concerns and is not consistent with the firearms laws that we have here in Massachusetts,” he said.
He said the men did not have gun licenses on them. Either way, he said, Massachusetts does not allow for the carrying of an unloaded or loaded gun on an interstate highway.
“I understand that they have a different perspective on that,” he said.
He said he was unclear about what the group’s intent was in traveling on the highway, including whether it was “staged” to draw the attention of police.
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said they were told the men were on their way to Maine from Rhode Island for “training” but investigators had not confirmed it.
(post is archived)