Based on evidence gathered by the Southern Poverty Law Center, it appears that the man who shot a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) ranger and a California Highway Patrol officer over the weekend is another unhinged lunatic in the same vein as Jerad and Amanda Miller.
Cole also has a history of indulging in far-right conspiracies on the Internet. At one site, he described himself as a “sovereign American Citizen attempting to thwart the obvious conspiracy and subterfuges of powers inimical to the United States.”
On his Facebook page, he has posted a number of conspiracy-related stories, including pieces describing the so-called “Bilderburger conspiracy” to control the world and various “Federal Reserve” conspiracy pieces. Likewise, his Twitter account is full of posts with a similar conspiracist bent.
There is no evidence, as of now, that Brent Douglas Cole participated in the Bundy ranch militia but he certainly holds the same views as they do.
There’s no way of knowing where heavily-armed conspiracy theorists will hit next. Jerad and Amanda Miller were just a couple of Good Guys With Guns until they executed two police officers while they were eating lunch. In recent years sovereign citizens have opened fire on law enforcement for things as petty as routine traffic stops.
One thing is certain: they have all have easy access to guns. Lots of guns.