Two Heavily Armed Men From Missouri Arrested Near Kenosha
Friday, September 4th, 2020 -- 8:24 AM
(WBAY) -Two men from Missouri were arrested with firearms, ammunition, and body armor near the Kenosha protests this week.The FBI tracked down the men at a hotel in Pleasant Prairie after receiving a tip the men wanted to take part in looting “and possibly ’pick people off,’” according to the criminal complaint. Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office charged Michael Karmo, 40, with being a Felon in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition and Cody Smith, 33, with Possession of Firearms and Ammunition by a Prohibited Person and Aiding and Abetting a Felon’s Possession of Firearms. The person who tipped off police said they were worried by Karmo’s increasing conspiracy theories and “crazy” political talk, and said Karmo would buy firearms through the mail and shave down parts to make them untraceable by law enforcement. Karmo and Smith told investigators they came to Kenosha for the President’s rally on September 1 and wanted to see proof of the rioting in Kenosha for themselves. Smith said most of the weapons belong to Karmo. Karmo denied having any weapons except an air rifle but said his fingerprints might be on the cases due to moving the luggage around. Karmo said after Kenosha they planned on going to Portland to see the rioting there and “that he would be willing to “take action” if police were defunded.”
Karmo has prior convictions for receiving known stolen property, vehicle theft, burglary, being a felon in possession of a firearm, evading a peace officer resulting in injury or death, and possession of controlled substances. Smith was prohibited from owning a firearm due to a domestic violence charge in California The city on Wednesday ended a curfew that had been in place since Aug. 24, a sign of calming tensions in the city of about 100,000 midway between Milwaukee and Chicago. The President visited Kenosha on Tuesday to thank law enforcement for their efforts and his Democratic rival Joe Biden was in Wisconsin on Thursday and met with members of Blake’s family and Kenosha community leaders. The police said damage to city property was about $2 million and damage to county property was about $385,000. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was investigating more than 23 fires, police said.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.