Man admits involvement in neo-Nazi swatting conspiracy

By Rachel Weiner
7/21/2020, 11:09:38 a.m.

The fall of a ring of white supremacists harassing journalists, activists and politicians began with a college student trying to get out of class.

John William Kirby Kelley, 19, acknowledged in Alexandria federal court Tuesday that he was part of a group that called in false threats to police so law enforcement would react with force — a form of harassment called “swatting.” Many of their targets were minorities or journalists and academics who had reported on the far right. One of the members was John Cameron Denton, identified by authorities as a leader in the far-right group Atomwaffen Division, who pleaded guilty last week.

Both Kelley and Denton face up to five years in prison for conspiracy to make interstate threats. Both have agreed to pay restitution to the police departments involved. Both admitted that they had used racial slurs, and Kelley acknowledged that he was aware of his co-conspirators’ involvement in neo-Nazism.

Kelley will be sentenced Nov. 24.

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Kelley admitted helping maintain a website called Doxbin, a repository of information for potential swatting targets — “government officials, journalists, executives, and celebrities,” in the words of U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady.

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