White Supremacists Encouraging Coronavirus Spread

White supremacists are instructing their followers to spread the novel coronavirus to police officers, Jews, and people of color. ABC News obtained an alert that the FBI sent to local law enforcement agencies on Thursday, March 19, 2020. (1)

In the alert, the FBI’s New York office warned that “members of extremist groups are encouraging one another to spread the virus, if contracted, through bodily fluids and personal interactions.” The FBI identified neo-Nazis and other white supremacist groups as the ones suggesting these actions. (1)

The FBI alert informed police agencies that white supremacists encouraged the use of spray bottles to spread infected fluids to police officers on the street. Jews are also a target. White nationalist groups have told members to spread COVID-19 to them by visiting “any place they may be congregated, to include markets, political offices, businesses and places of worship.” (1)

The FBI did not comment directly on the alert. But the agency released this statement: “FBI field offices routinely share information with their local law enforcement partners to assist in protecting the communities they serve. These products are intended to be informative in nature, and as such, they contain appropriate caveats to describe the confidence in the sourcing of information and the likelihood of the assessment. Additionally, when written at a local level, these products will note that the perspective offered may be limited to the field office’s area of responsibility.” (1)

Bioterrorism Popular Among White Supremacists

This is not the first warning a federal agency has issued about white supremacists and COVID-19. According to MSN News, the Federal Protective Service (FPS) sent out a brief on February 17. It said, “Violent extremists continue to make bioterrorism a popular topic among themselves.” (2)

It seems that the FBI is tracking white nationalists’ conversations on an app called Telegram. It’s an encrypted messaging app that is popular with neo-Nazis. The FPS learned that white supremacists planned to try to infect law enforcement agents and “nonwhite” people with coronavirus. (2)

In the intelligence brief, the FPS wrote, “White Racially Motivated Violent Extremists have recently commented on the coronavirus stating that it is an ‘OBLIGATION’ to spread it should any of them contract the virus.” (2)

The agency shared that extremists had discussed methods of spreading the virus. They included: (2)

• leaving saliva on door handles in FBI offices
• spitting on elevator buttons in “nonwhite neighborhoods”
• having infected extremists spend time in public areas with groups they consider enemies

Additional Threat to Vulnerable Groups

While the federal agencies did not comment on the briefs, experts shared their perspectives. Don Mihalek is the executive vice president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association Foundation. He told ABC News, “Anti-government folks in America love to target law enforcement as a symbol of America’s authority. It’s just sad that that’s their focus at a time of crisis in the nation.” (1)

Michael Masters is the head of Secure Communities Network. This is an umbrella group that coordinates security for Jewish organizations and synagogues around the country. He informed ABC News about the additional threat to some groups during this global crisis. “While the world faces a deadly pandemic, it’s a stark reminder that certain groups – notably the Jewish community and law enforcement – must also continue the battle against those who wish to hurt or kill them.” (1)

“As the economic situation remains fragile and civil society disrupted, the potential for the followers of hate to act becomes more likely…and more deadly,” Masters said. (1)