More Fractures in the Aryan Nations Christian Identist Groups
Bill Morlin over at SPLC has done a great job detailing the recent history of the leftovers since Pastor Ray Redfeairn’s death in 2003.
Kreis claimed in his Jan. 6 post that he was named in advance in 2001 by Aryan Nations founder Richard Butler to succeed Pastor Ray Redfeairn, who took over from Butler, if Redfeairn, who died unexpectedly in 2003, was not able to continue as leader for any reason. But Kreis was never able to really revive the organization, and other extremists fought him in their own bids to take over in the wake of Butler’s 2004 death. Few extremists saw Kreis as the real leader of Aryan Nations, which was nearly destroyed by a 2000 lawsuit and Butler’s death.
In following years, while living in South Carolina, Kreis came under FBI investigation after making statements supporting Al Qaeda terrorists. Nothing came of those statements, but the probe did lead other allegations against Kreis, and last August he pleaded guilty to a federal charge of lying to the U.S. government while drawing military veterans’ benefits. The 56-year-old racist was given a six-month prison sentence and just released in mid-December. He still must pay $192,387 in restitution in $100-a-month payments to U.S. government he despises.
“You may or may not know, and none of you will be surprised to hear, but ZOG has done its best to destroy me and my family, imprisoning me and removing me from my wife and 8 children as well as my congregation,” Kreis said in what were his first public comments since being sentenced in December. ZOG is an acronym for the neo-Nazi phrase Zionist Occupied Government, meaning the federal government.
“We will not be held hostage by the tyranny of our enemies [and] we will prevail,” Kreis said. “I will remain devoted to our cause as pastor in the church. However, in light of these circumstances which are beyond my control, I find myself in a position, for the better of the Nation, to pass leadership to Pastor Drew Bostwick.”
Kreis said Bostwick “holds many treasures from the teaching of our esteemed elders,” including Butler. Bostwick “is a great teacher,” Kreis said, adding, “Yahweh will work through him leading us all to eternal victory!”
Bostwick, in a follow-up posting, claims he is the last living Aryan Nations pastor “ordained” by Butler just days after a historic lawsuit that bankrupted the Aryan operation in North Idaho. The 2000 civil suit, resulting in a $6.3 million jury verdict, was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center on behalf of a woman and her son who were assaulted by Aryan guards.
“[That] was a terrible time for everyone,” Bostwick said. “The church was being destroyed by external enemies and internal rats and traitors.”
Before bulldozers moved in and firefighters burned down the buildings at the bankrupt Aryan compound for training exercises, Bostwick said he was “divinely called to the ministry.” He claimed he was “ordained in [the] war-torn church” on Oct. 28, 2000, by Butler, Kreis and Pastor Neuman Britton, while “evangelist” and fellow neo-Nazi R. Vincent Bertollini and others in the congregation were witnesses.