ATLANTA, GEORGIA: Five Antifa members were reportedly arrested and charged with domestic terrorism on Tuesday, December 13 after a joint operation against protesters of $90 million upcoming police training center in Atlanta. The planned 85-acre training center has been the focal point of protests by Antifa, who have dubbed the site as ‘Cop City’.
The five activists, who were arrested on Tuesday, were identified as Serena Hertel, 25, of California, Nicholas Olson, 25, of Nebraska, Francis Carroll, 22, of Maine, Arieon Robinson, 22, of Wisconsin and Leonardo Vioselle, 20, of Macon, Georgia, according to Daily Mail. Apart from domestic terrorism, the members are accused of severe assault, criminal trespass, and interference with government property.
The arrests happened Tuesday along Bouldercrest Road in the woods right near the planned site for a controversial training center for first responders that critics call cop city amid a massive police presence. The park has been at the center of contentious debate between neighboring communities, protesters and police. Protesters for months have been camping out in the woods they call Weelaunee or the people’s park. They oppose what they say is an expansion of the police state into the forest.
Before Tuesday’s operation, the Atlanta Police Department had made several other arrests at the site for ongoing criminal activities including carjacking, destruction of property, arson, and attacks against public safety officials.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation noted that the arrests were made after several police agencies entered the site of the planned center as a part of a joint operation to clear the barricades that were blocking the entrances to the site. “Yesterday, several people threw rocks at police cars and attacked EMT’s outside the neighboring fire stations with rocks and bottles,” the bureau said on Wednesday, December 14 according to CNN. “Task force members used various tactics to arrest individuals who were occupying makeshift treehouses.”
Several other crimes were reported at the site on Saturday, December 10, when DeKalb Fire Department firefighters were called to the location to put out a dumpster fire. Richard Porter told WXIA that he was attacked by the protesters when he tried to pick up some scrap metal from the area. The firefighter said the members attacked him with stones and gas bombs. “It seemed to me like they were going to burn the truck with me in it,” he told the outlet.
However, in response to the arrests, a representative of a group supporting the protest, the Atlanta Solidarity Fund, told AJC that those arrested were ‘legitimate political protesters.’ “There’s clear evidence to the contrary that the people they have been arresting and targeting and attacking have been engaged in nothing but peaceful civil disobedience,” Marlon Kautz said according to Daily Mail.
The five members are currently being held at DeKalb County Jail. DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said in a statement, “I strongly believe in the right to peacefully protest for what one believes is right and just. However, I draw the line at violence, destruction of property, and threatening and causing harm to others.” She added, “My office will always stand up to protect the citizens of DeKalb County. The alleged acts of violence at the training facility site put the public in grave danger and will not be tolerated.”
* Article from: meaww.com
