Texan in far-right Boogaloo Bois charged with rioting in Minneapolis protest, feds say
A Texas member of the far-right Boogaloo Bois is charged with shooting a Minneapolis police station during protests over the death of George Floyd, federal authorities say.
Ivan Harrison Hunter, a 26-year-old from Boerne, Texas, is charged with rioting during the protests. He was arrested Wednesday in San Antonio.
Hunter is accused of shooting the Minneapolis police Third Precinct building 13 times with an AK-47-style rifle on May 28, according to authorities. Federal agents say video shows Hunter firing the gun into the building.
The precinct building was burned down later that evening, after two men were seen entering the building with Molotov cocktails, the complaint says.
The Boogaloo Bois are described by authorities as a “loosely-connected group” that espouses violent anti-government rhetoric. “Boogaloo” references a second impending civil war in the U.S., authorities say.
In late May, Minneapolis was stirred by civil unrest after the death of George Floyd, a Black man who died after former police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck while three other officers stood by. Chauvin and the other officers were fired and have been charged in Floyd’s death.
Hunter and other members of the Boogaloo Bois met at a grocery store near the police station, according to a federal complaint obtained by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
“Lock and load boys. Boog flags are in the air, and the national network is going off,” a group member posted on Facebook, the complaint says.
A couple of hours after the burning of the Third Precinct building, Hunter messaged Steven Carillo, another member of the group, who was in Oakland, California., the complaint states.
“Go for police buildings,” Hunter messaged Carillo.
“I did better lol,” Carillo replied.
Carillo was later charged with murder in the shooting of a Federal Protective Services officer in Oakland — the same night, authorities say.
In early June, Austin police officers stopped a vehicle occupied by Hunter and two others after they left a Floyd protest, authorities say. The officers found an AK-47-style rifle and Hunter was wearing a tactical vest with AK-47 magazines, authorities say.
During the traffic stop, Hunter told the officers he was a leader of the Boogaloo Bois in the South Texas area and at the Minneapolis police station when it was set on fire, authorities say.
Hunter and the two others were released after weapons, ammunition and marijuana were seized, authorities say.
Several days later, the FBI learned of Hunter’s affiliation with Carillo. A confidential informant told agents that Hunter admitted to shooting the police building and joining in looting, authorities say.
The informant said Hunter turned angry when Benjamin Teeter of North Carolina, a member of the Boogaloo Bois, was arrested in Minnesota. Hunter and threatened to start “killing people” and said he would “go down shooting” if law enforcement attempted to arrest him or his friend, the complaint says.
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