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Feds arrest man they say intended to act as militia “sniper” at southern border and attack federal agents
A Tennessee militia member who told an undercover federal agent that the U.S. is “being invaded” by migrants was planning to travel to the southern border with a stockpile of weapons and commit acts of violence against federal border agents, according to a criminal complaint.
Paul Faye, of Cunningham, was arrested in Tennessee on Monday by the FBI after a nearly yearlong investigation and charged with selling an unregistered firearm suppressor (silencer). He faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison if convicted on the charge, according to the complaint filed this week by federal prosecutors in Nashville.
Faye will appear in federal court on Feb. 12 for a detention hearing. His arrest was first reported by the online publication Court Watch.
The complaint said Faye attracted the attention of federal investigators when they noticed he had “extensive contact” with Bryan C. Perry, a Tennessee militia member who authorities said was planning a violent conflict with Border Patrol agents before his arrest in 2022.
Perry, of Clarksville, Tennessee, has been charged with conspiring to kill federal agents. Federal investigators said Perry tried to recruit members to his militia to travel to the border to shoot migrants and federal agents. Perry allegedly fired at FBI agents who traveled to Missouri to arrest him in October 2022.
Faye had intended to travel to the border with Perry before Perry’s arrest, according to the complaint, which did not identify by name the militia or militias Faye is accused of being associated with.
A public defender representing Faye didn’t immediately respond to an email message seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.
Faye had a stockpile of weapons at his Tennessee home and told a person working undercover for the FBI that he had a substance known as Tannerite, which can be used to make land mines, according to the complaint. Faye told the undercover agent during an initial meeting in March 2023 that he believed the U.S. government “was training to take on its citizens” and purposely allowing migrants to cross the border “to help the government,” the complaint said.
In a May 2023 phone call, Faye told the agent that “the patriots are going to rise up because we are being invaded,” alluding to migrants crossing the southern border. Faye also said he planned to take explosives to the border and serve as a sniper with a militia group traveling there, the complaint said.
In mid-December 2023, Faye told an undercover agent during an in-person meeting he “discussed coordinating with militia groups from Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee,” according to the complaint, which was seen by CBS News.
The complaint says Faye told the agent “his hope is ‘to stir up the hornet’s nest’ at the border so that others will come in to provide further support. Specifically, Faye stated, “Well, I’m going to tell you … what’s going to happen. What I hope happens. Is called a domino effect. I want, I want the news to find out about it. The right kind of news.'”
Faye invited the undercover agent to his home on Jan. 11, according to the complaint, where the agent saw Faye’s cache of weapons, ammunition and a bulletproof vest, the complaint said. During that meeting he “discussed the plan to travel to the U.S./Mexico border and indicated the desire to commit acts of violence,” the complaint said.
Faye later sold the undercover agent an unregistered firearms suppressor with no serial number for $100, the complaint said.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
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A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
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Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.