Journalist Andy Ngo, an expert on violent “Antifa” groups, identified the “Riot Kitchen” organization arrested by Kenosha Police this week, as a Seattle-based “Antifa group that supplies rioters.”
“Seattle #antifa group @riotkitchen206 was arrested in Kenosha, Wisc. They drove all the way there with their van & stopped to fill multiple fuel cans with gasoline in what is believed for criminal purposes,” Ngo said, detailing the arrests.
“It’s an antifa group that supplies rioters. They claim to only give out food but as authorities in Kenosha found, they bring with them much more than that,” he added:
On August 26, Kenosha Police received reports of “several suspicious vehicles with out of state plates” meeting in a remote lot. Officers identified the suspicious vehicles as a black school bus, bread truck, and minivan, and surveilled them, witnessing individuals attempting to fill multiple fuel cans.
Authorities suspected that the individuals were “preparing for criminal activity related to the civil unrest” in the city, prompting their response.
According to the Kenosha Police’s media release, individuals in the minivan attempted to escape, but police stopped the vehicle and “ultimately forced entry to the minivan and arrested the occupants.” Those in the bus and bread truck were also arrested, with nine total arrests for disorderly conduct. Authorities recovered several items of interest from the vehicles, including “helmets, gas masks, protective vests, illegal fireworks, and suspected controlled substances.”
The Seattle Times identified those arrested as members of the Seattle-based Riot Kitchen, which presents itself as a group of volunteers who provide support to protesters, as Ngo acknowledged.
“FEED THE PEOPLE. Providing hot food including vegetarian/vegan for Seattle folx, the group’s Twitter bio reads alongside the hashtags #blacklivesmatter, #icantbreathe, and #sayhisname.
Riot Kitchen also posted a video of the arrest, accusing authorities of kidnapping their volunteers.
“Riot Kitchen HQ just learned that our bus crew was arrested in broad daylight in #Kenosha today – kidnapped by feds in unmarked vans. We are currently trying to find our friends who were just there to feed people,” the group said, failing to address why its volunteers also had illegal fireworks, suspected controlled substances, helmets, haz masks, and protective vests in their possession:
According to the Times, Riot Kitchen came as the result of the prolonged protests in Seattle, serving the former “autonomous” zone known as the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) — an area dominated by self-described anarchists and Antifa activists.
The Times reported that Riot Kitchen recently “expanded its efforts to provide food at Portland protests and this month incorporated as a nonprofit.”
“We are a nonprofit and our mission is to feed people for free — protesters and everyone in need,” board member Jennifer Scheurle claimed. “We were from out of town — but that’s not illegal.”
The group’s presence came as violence continued to escalate in Kenosha, with protesters shamelessly torching businesses throughout the city. Gov. Tony Evers (D) has since requested additional states to assist Wisconsin as local authorities gear up for what could be a weekend of violence in Kenosha.
“National Guard troops from Arizona, Michigan, and Alabama will add to Wisconsin National Guard troops already on the ground supporting civil authorities in Kenosha under the EMAC,” a Thursday press release from the governor’s office read.
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