Multiple splinter cell members of the radical Turtle Island Liberation Front, which posts disturbing slogans such as “Death to America” on social media, were arrested last Friday for allegedly plotting a New Year’s Eve terror attack in the Los Angeles area.
Turtle Island Liberation Front (TILF), a little-known “pro-Palestinian, anti-law-enforcement, and anti-government” extremist group, has quietly been raising funds and resources to usher in a “revolutionary change in government.”
“TILF also calls for the working class to rise up and fight back against capitalism,” an FBI affidavit noted. “Moreover, TILF advocates that liberalism and peaceful protest will be the downfall of those who believe it is enough, and that ‘direct action is the only way.’”
Where does Turtle Island come from?
The extremist group is named after “Turtle Island,” an Indigenous term, particularly among the Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee, for the continent of North America. It stems from tales about the continent being built on a giant turtle’s back.
That name, which predates the US, dovetails with the extremist group’s goals of eliminating America, which it feels is illegitimate.
Left-wing activist groups such as Black Lives Matter have appropriated the term as well, and it is often used as a means of countering the “colonial” names for the US and Canada.
TILF has taken that concept to the extreme, while mixing a push for “decolonisation” of North America and of Israel.
Its members have used phrases such as “From Turtle Island to Palestine, Occupation is a Crime” to convey that mix.
“When we say ‘Death to America’ and call for an end to colonization, it doesn’t mean the displacement or harm of non indigenous citizens,” the radical group insisted in an October Facebook post.
The group has also proudly posted images on social media of its members brandishing signs such as “Death to ICE!!!” and parading around Palestinian flags.
Turtle Island’s links to the foiled New Year’s Eve terror plot
On Monday, the FBI and Justice Department announced that the feds foiled a plot by a TILF splinter group that calls itself the Order of the Black Lotus, which was allegedly working on “OPERATION MIDNIGHT SUN,” a bombing plot.
Members of that splinter group handed an eight-page memo on OPERATION MIDNIGHT SUN to a confidential FBI source, a criminal complaint explained.
Four members of the Order of the Black Lotus — Audrey Ilene Carroll, 30; Zachary Aaron Page, 32; Dante Gaffield, 24; and Tina Lai, 41 — were charged with possession of an unregistered destructive device and conspiracy.
A fifth suspect, who has not yet been identified, was also charged with plotting a separate attack.
The bombing plot entailed participants donning “BlacBloc” attire, purchasing black powder pipe bomb materials in cash and taking other steps to conceal their identity, according to the complaint.
They also seemed aware that the feds were likely tracking them. Page claimed it was “100,000[%]” likely the FBI was on their trail during a Dec. 7 meeting, per the complaint.
Both Carroll and Page had been contemplating follow-up attacks, such as targeting Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents with pipe bombs, hoping it “would take some of them out and scare the rest,” per the complaint.
“[I] kind of had this notebook where I wrote down multiple plans that never happened or got delayed / so it’s like / my terrorist diary / lmaooooo / I have to get rid of that,” Carroll wrote in a Signal exchange with the FBI’s source, per the FBI complaint.
President Trump had signed an executive order on Sept. 22 directing his administration to take aim at targeting domestic terror groups such as Antifa.
“These threats are sophisticated, organized campaigns of targeted intimidation, radicalization, threats, and violence designed to silence opposing speech, limit political activity and direct policy outcomes, and prevent the proper functioning of a democratic society,” Los Angeles first assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli told reporters.
The four suspects were busted in Lucerne Valley in the Mojave Desert, where they tried to detonate an improvised explosive, according to authorities.
They are slated to make an initial appearance in Los Angeles federal court on Monday.
