Anti-ICE 'digital Minutemen' use military-grade surveillance tactics against feds

Early past week, FBI Director Kash Patel announced that the bureau is investigating the usage of the encrypted Signal messaging level by "ICE Watch" activists to way and artifact national migration enforcement.

Just days later, Jill Garvey, co-founder of a radical called "States astatine the Core," logged into a Zoom webinar to bid a caller harvest of "rapid responders" connected a military-grade quality gathering method called "SALUTE." An acronym for Size, Activity, Location, Uniform, Time, Equipment, SALUTE is simply a mnemonic instrumentality that typically instructs soldiers however to systematically way details astir enemies. Garvey framed the enactment arsenic operational surveillance against agents she had called "mercenaries" successful an interrogation days earlier.

"We are each ICE Watch!" declared Garvey, whose radical is funded by the Hopewell Fund, a dark-money enactment aligned with the Democratic Party. She added a boast that she's taught 40,000 "rapid responders" this past year.

Garvey is  just 1 of hundreds of anti-government operatives grooming agitators to interfere with national instrumentality enforcement. Last Saturday, Manola De Los Santos, co-founder of the People’s Forum – a Marxist-Leninist enactment funded by a China-based tech tycoon, Neville Roy Singham, with documented ties to the Chinese Communist Party – hosted an all-day "People’s Assembly for ICE Out of NY!" astatine the group’s office connected W. 37th Street.

"Adopt a corner!" leaders urged, instructing attendees to behaviour surveillance tactics astatine fixed locations.

That aforesaid day, astatine astir 4 p.m. ET, a idiosyncratic connected 1 of 37 Signal chats operated by the "Seattle Area Rapid Response" web shared a transcript of the "Mini-Manual Of The Urban Guerrilla," a 67-page Marxist manifesto outlining the usage of "mobile units," "surprise," "knowledge of the terrain," "occupation," "mobility and speed," a "clandestine press," "popular support" and "street tactics," specified arsenic "constructing barricades," "throwing bottles" and yet utilizing lethal weapons, to wage a "revolutionary equipped struggle" against the United States.

The idiosyncratic directed chap "rapid responders" to leafage 35 for "security level questions." There, the manual advised signaling a "daily accusation service" connected "what the force appears to beryllium doing, wherever the constabulary nett is operating and what points are being watched."

A Fox News Digital probe reveals these groups are portion of a nationwide web of astatine slightest 200 anti-ICE organizations that are gathering a civilian intelligence-gathering and "rapid response" strategy that trains, mobilizes and activates civilians to enactment arsenic on-the-ground scouts, utilizing the SALUTE method to cod information connected national authorities they formed arsenic the "enemy," raising superior nationalist information concerns. 

In quality circles, they would beryllium called "collectors" successful the trade of "human intelligence, oregon "HUMINT."

Fox News Digital has established that these nationalist operations provender information astir the movements of instrumentality enforcement and migration authorities into astatine slightest 13 blase databases, storing highly-sensitive accusation including licence sheet numbers, timestamps, geolocation data, azygous details, photographs, behaviour patterns and, successful astatine slightest 1 case, the names, email addresses and telephone numbers of national authorities. The web operates done astatine slightest 18 hubs nationwide successful mostly Democratic states and cities, coordinating traffic, verification and reporting.

GUN-WIELDING ICE AGENTS BRUSH BACK MINNEAPOLIS AGITATORS

"MN ICE Plates" is 1 of galore databases that person emerged successful caller months, storing the photos, licence plates, movements, behaviors and vehicles of federal, authorities and section instrumentality enforcement officers and agents.  (MN ICE Plates)

"This is mind-blowing. We person an full federation of collectors against our country’s instrumentality enforcement. It’s highly dangerous," said retired U.S. Army Green Beret Eric Schwalm, who archetypal learned the SALUTE model arsenic a recently enlisted Army private, aboriginal applying it during patrols successful Iraq arsenic helium fought an insurgency and, then, successful Afghanistan arsenic helium trained Northern Alliance fighters to decision the Taliban government. 

After reviewing the civilian training, operations and databases uncovered by Fox News Digital, helium said, "If Iraqi absorption ran this level of cognition against us, we couldn’t person stayed past 2007. They didn’t adjacent request to sprout astatine us. Protests similar this would person created a communicative nightmare."

Indeed, these stakeouts person not lone go deadly, with the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, but they person led to galore confrontations and astir often enactment national authorities connected the losing extremity of a communicative war. On Tuesday, a radical of "rapid responders" successful "Minnesota Ice Watch" tailed ICE agents truthful intimately with their vehicles that agents ordered them — astatine gunpoint — to halt their cars, earlier handcuffing and detaining them.

At a caller anti-ICE grooming webinar, Gabe Gonzalez, a co-founder of "Protect Rogers Park," a vicinity anti-ICE radical successful northbound Chicago that pioneered the "rapid response" alerts, coaxed the webinar's attendees to instrumentality risks, complimenting them arsenic "courageous." His radical includes SALUTE successful its "SOP," oregon lasting operating procedures, to "protect targeted locations," similar churches and nutrient pantries, and organize "Remote Responders" stationed astatine "cafes and shops," "near windows of large throughways" and different "sensitive areas."

CCP-CONNECTED MILLIONAIRE ALLEGEDLY BANKROLLS MINNEAPOLIS AGITATOR GROUPS THROUGH DARK MONEY NETWORK

According to a Fox News Digital investigation, astatine slightest 200 groups are grooming civilians to usage a military-grade reporting method called "S.A.L.U.T.E." to cod information connected federal, authorities and section instrumentality enforcement agents., which "MN License Plates" database calls "Abductors." (MN ICE Plates)

Raising peculiar nationalist information concerns, the web includes ft soldiers and leaders of the ANSWER Coalition and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, 2 nonrecreational protestation organizations successful the Singham web that openly enactment the People’s Republic of China arsenic an perfect authorities and state they question to dismantle the "hyper-imperialism" of the "American empire" from wrong the "belly of the beast." The organizations didn’t instrumentality requests for comment.

Several legislature committees are investigating Singham’s network, which present includes "ICE Out of New York." That group tells donors online: "Yes, your donation is tax-deductible. We are collecting donations done The People’s Forum which is simply a 501(c)3 not for nett organization…" As portion of its efforts, its leaders created a slick "Migra Whistle Instructional Zine," with the SALUTE method elaborate nether the header: "SPREAD INFORMATION, NOT PANIC."

"FORM A CROWD. STAY LOUD," the flyer instructed its scouts.

In upstate New York, Rafael Concepcion, a erstwhile adjunct teaching prof of photography astatine Syracuse University, told Fox News Digital helium plans to motorboat "a score" of caller ICE tracking databases built from a mapping level helium published past year, called "DEICER" for "Diversity Equity Inclusion Community Engagement Reporter."

Concepcion said helium wanted to physique a "network of integer minutemen," the elite hand-picked rapid-deployment unit that were portion of the New England assemblage militia, acceptable astatine a "minute’s notice" to scout British Army locations during the American Revolution, often times earlier skirmishes broke out.

In today’s scenario, U.S. national authorities are the target. Concepcion said "the usage of the SALUTE method" is to differentiate betwixt section constabulary and national migration officers. 

"One of the things that our constitution has tried to beryllium capable to supply is an avenue for individuals to marque definite that they are alert of immoderate benignant of tyrannical government," helium said. "If we are expected to beryllium capable to defender against overseas and domestic, determination should beryllium a mechanics for america to beryllium capable to place that.

Already, Siembar NC, a 501(c)(4) governmental nonprofit based successful Charlotte, N.C., with $2.5 cardinal successful gross successful its last taxation filing, has launched the DEICER database successful North Carolina connected a level called OjoNC. "Ojo" means eyes successful Spanish. Further north, LUCE Immigration Justice Network of Massachusetts, a task of Neighbor to Neighbor MA Education Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has activated Concepcion's mapping database. In Chicago, helium developed "Windbreaker" for section groups to use. The groups didn’t respond to requests for comment.

In a near-identical grooming past week, Garvey’s league unfolded similar a tract briefing. She pressed caller recruits to measure whether they were observing "a tactical unit," place "types of munitions and however much" and find whether officers were moving successful "four, two, four, oregon six-man formations." She emphasized the value of corroboration, instructing participants to "gather much radical to corroborate what you’re seeing."

Garvey outlined 3 defined operational roles — recorder, supporter, and show — and instructed participants to transportation whistles with coded signals. Three blasts indicated an ICE cognition successful progress. Participants were told to deterioration the whistles visibly, truthful others would admit that they were "part of the team." Garvey urged them to rehearse astatine location what to bash if stopped by police.

WATCH: HARDCORE SOCIALIST GROUPS STAGE-MANAGE ANTI-ICE PROTEST IN WASHINGTON

Nonprofit groups similar "States astatine the Core" are grooming civilians successful an Army-grade quality method called "S.A.L.U.T.E.," instructing them however to systematically way details astir the "Size, Activity, Location, Uniform, Time, Equipment," of ICE enforcement connected platforms similar the "MN ICE Plates" database, which includes photos showing the afloat representation of instrumentality enforcement officers. Fox News Digital blurred the identities of agents and vehicles unmasked successful the database. (MN ICE Plates)

Unassuming successful appearance, with well-coiffed blonde hairsbreadth and a soft-spoken, timid transportation style, Garvey defended the surveillance during the webinar, saying the targets were "public officials."

A spokesperson for the Hopewell Fund said successful a statement, "States astatine the Core provides grooming for radical to lawfully and peacefully observe instrumentality enforcement successful their communities, and Hopewell is arrogant to beryllium their fiscal sponsor."

Some of the databases person drawn the attraction of a counterforce of autarkic programmers and exertion specialists — including anonymous X users with handles specified arsenic @astrarce and @b****uneedsoap — who person attempted to disrupt oregon unopen them down. At slightest 1 database has gone offline. Others stay progressive and proceed to grow.

The activities of these surveillance networks perchance interruption aggregate national laws. Federal statutes, specified arsenic 18 U.S.C. § 115 and 18 U.S.C. § 2261A, support national agents from threats and stalking, and violations connected to obstructing, striking oregon resisting national agents are felonies. 

In Washington state, the Seattle-area accelerated effect web has spawned 35 abstracted Signal chats. In Minnesota, determination are astatine slightest 20 Signal chats. In Rhode Island, the Alliance to Mobilize Our Resistance sends retired alerts implicit the WhatsApp messaging platform.

From there, the quality flows into databases.

Last June, Dominick Skinner, reportedly an Irish migration activistic based successful the Netherlands, archetypal published 1 of the astir egregious databases, "ICE List," documenting the names, photos, addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers of ICE and Border Patrol agents, successful a bid to clasp them "legally accountable." The database has grown to an estimated 4,500 entries.

He calls the database a caller "journalistic" task of "Crust News," a Substack newsletter that has published articles against the "dictatorship" of "the USA’s fascist regime" and the "terrorism" of its "modern Gestapo." 

In his "incident" report, Skinner specifically asks for "clear views of agents, uniforms, vehicles oregon locations."

Within minutes, Skinner responded to a petition for remark but refused to reply immoderate questions, including astir his ideological information oregon backing sources, alternatively railing against the "fascist media sphere successful the USA" and noting "your questions volition beryllium shared with the public."

THE FAR-LEFT NETWORK THAT HELPED PUT ALEX PRETTI IN HARM'S WAY, THEN MADE HIM A MARTYR

A web of anti-ICE groups person built databases that database vehicles allegedly linked to migration enforcement activity. They are grooming civilian scouts to papers the make, model, colour and adjacent model tint of vehicles and uploading the accusation adjacent erstwhile they are lone "Highly suspected ICE." This representation comes from the "MN ICE Plates" database. (MN ICE Plates)

In Minnesota, the developers of the "MN ICE Plates" database usage the connection of socialist and communist networks to picture themselves arsenic operating successful "occupied Minnesota." It’s supported by "Defend the  612," the country codification for Minneapolis, and its dispatchers sent "rapid responders," including section nonmigratory Alex Pretti, to the Glam Doll Donut store connected Nicollet Avenue, successful the hr earlier his confrontation with national officials and killing, according to Fox News Digital reporting.

Over the past week, since the FBI probe launched into the backend surveillance tactics connected national officials,  the database entries person astir doubled to 5,397 records of "confirmed" and "highly suspected" ICE vehicles and agents, with photos, locations, timestamps, and cross-referenced sightings. The database says it is "documenting & resisting against ICE, police, & each assemblage militarized regimes," inspired by "movements towards liberation."

The information crisscrosses the nation. This past Sunday, astatine 7:03 p.m. ET, a user filed a "Critical" study on IceOut.org, a web-based reporting level tally by the Pueblo Project Foundation arsenic portion of its "People Over Papers" initiative, documenting "possible ICE activity." 

Earlier that day, connected Arnett Street successful Elizabeth, N.J., a idiosyncratic alleged that "3 men took a female. There were 4 antithetic cars," reporting the incidental arsenic "Immigration Enforcement" and uploading photographs of the vehicles and alleged agents. Pueblo Project Foundation didn’t instrumentality a petition for comment.

The "RESIST" platform, whose developers accidental their database "flips the publication connected surveillance," utilizing "facial designation and biometric tracking." 

"Mask oregon not, they can’t fell anymore," the level promises, calling itself "civilian-powered intelligence" that "exposes atrocious actors" and "empowers nonstop action, nationalist vulnerability and intelligence disruption."

Another platform, ICEInMyArea.org, created by anonymous developers who didn’t respond to a petition for comment, says it has 4,000 regular visitors with quality reviews of caller reports, making it "one of the astir reliable tools for tracking ICE enactment nationwide." 

But its developers committedness users "completely anonymous" privacy.

Under "Recent Reports" implicit the past 24 hours, it details "ICE sighted successful New Britain, CT," connected Corbin Avenue adjacent a McDonald’s, "ice agents utilizing the people parking lot" connected Colorado Boulevard successful Los Angeles "as a base" and a metallic Ford Explorer with "no beforehand plate, whited-out/covered rear plate" connected N. Aviation Boulevard successful Manhattan Beach, Calif.

FBI INVESTIGATING MINNESOTA ANTI-ICE SIGNAL GROUP CHATS, PATEL SAYS

As portion of the "SALUTE" quality method that anti-ICE nonprofits are teaching civilian "rapid responders," they instruct them to see the circumstantial date, clip and determination of alleged migration enforcement activity. "Whipple" is shorthand for the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building successful Minneapolis, adjacent Highway 62, wherever instrumentality enforcement activities are often tracked successful the "MN ICE Plates." (MN ICE Plates)

On the East Coast, Ahmad Perez, a erstwhile Biden medication governmental appointee and laminitis of Islip Forward, launched "Long Island ICE Tracker" to papers "individuals and vehicles" successful public, with "no tenable anticipation of privacy." He "strictly prohibited" the usage of the accusation to "harass, threaten, intimidate, stalk, doxx oregon interfere" with "any person" oregon their "lawful activities."

Thursday connected the site, Perez bragged "574 Verified Sightings" successful the database, with a new listing astatine 1 p.m. of a weathered achromatic Ford conveyance connected Nottingham Avenue successful Patchogue, N.Y., a decal saying "POLICE INTERCEPTOR" connected the rear backmost door.

"Attempts to statement assemblage transparency efforts arsenic ‘illegal’ oregon ‘surveillance’ often bespeak discomfort with accountability alternatively than genuine interest for morals oregon safety," Perez told Fox News Digital. "Oversight, documentation and nationalist consciousness are not threats to ideology — they are foundational to it."

Online tools adjacent generate QR-codes for SALUTE templates that standardize civilian quality postulation nationwide. 

In Minnesota, the Workers Defense Alliance of Twin Cities, a socialist radical whose website features a graphic of Minneapolis police’s Third Precinct connected fire, teaches SALUTE and a Spanish alternative, "ALERTA," for "Activity, Location, Equipment, Response requested, Time and date, Appearance." It pitches the model arsenic "community defense" portion explicitly teaching structured surveillance. Its leaders didn’t instrumentality a petition for comment.

"ICE Watch RI" and Alerta de Migra run successful Rhode Island with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, combining protestation mobilization with logged sightings of national officers.

The creator of different database – "Deportation Tracker" – said helium puts successful spot "strict policies and moderation" truthful that immoderate contented that violates anyone’s privateness is "rejected immediately." Identifying himself arsenic Sam Fletcher, a precocious schoolhouse student, helium said, "The level does not correspond immoderate civilian quality and surveillance operation. Everything that is submitted indispensable spell done a quality reappraisal earlier being posted to the site. We don’t let immoderate names, images oregon licence plates allowed connected the site. Nothing that is personally identifiable to anyone."

"Any doxxing, harassing oregon stalking is unacceptable," helium said.

Still, critics say, the database has the accusation for users to interruption Fletcher’s "terms of service."

Meanwhile, successful Portland "Anti-Facist Aktion" hosts a "PDX ICE/DHS License Plates Community Surveillance Database," claiming to big 627 records. Its developers couldn’t beryllium reached for comment. It notes: "WARNING: THIS INFORMATION IS DANGEROUS TO AUTHORITY."

Garvey, the blonde anti-ICE ma whose radical leads new trainings each respective days. In an interrogation with Wajahat Ali, the big of a podcast called the "The Left Hook," Ali lauded Garvey’s strategy: "Your camera is your weapon."

Overnight, section residents successful the Seattle Signal chats got alerts that they would person their archetypal "Seattle accelerated effect drill" connected Sunday betwixt 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. section time.

The announcement volition "follow the modular SALUTE format" to instruct responders wherever to go.

The alert warned: "don’t beryllium moving reddish lights to get determination first, don’t beryllium blowing whistles erstwhile you arrive."

Fox News Digital's Kiera McDonald contributed to this report.

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