A Florida man with suspected antifa connections was arrested Thursday after police found a pipe bomb in his backpack.
Garrett James Smith, who turned 22 the day he was arrested, was nabbed outside the Pinellas County Courthouse where a rally was being held to protest the detention of a participant in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol incursion.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said the lawful protest opposed the detention of retired Green Beret Jeremy Brown, according to WTVT-TV.
Brown faces charges of entering a restricted area and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building as well as federal firearms charges, according to WFLA-TV.
#Florida
— Shane B. Murphy (@shanermurph) January 8, 2022
“Garrett James Smith was arrested on charges of making and possessing a destructive device and loitering. He remains in jail on a bond of $300,000.”
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As the rally took place, deputies spotted a man dressed all in black, with a black face covering and a black backpack. The man ran from the protest.
“He was running fast, he was running away from something,” Gualtieri said at a news conference on Friday, according to The Post Millennial.
Once Smith was detained, police searched his backpack, where they found a black helmet and other items including a pipe bomb.
Deputies said M-80 fireworks were later found in Smith’s car. A search of the Oldsmar, Florida, residence Smith shared with his parents found what deputies called four grenade-type explosives and another pipe-style bomb, WTVT reported.
The backpack included what was labeled a “direct action” checklist.
The document included a drawn umbrella, which is an antifa symbol, according to the Post Millennial, while the helmet had an antifa “iron front” symbol painted upon it.
The list also included “clothing,” “armor,” and “gear,” with “tips” listed below each category.
By Jack Davis
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