Terrorism suspect makes reference to extremist conspiracies
A man facing terrorism charges for using an armored vehicle to block traffic near Hoover Dam has written jailhouse letters that appear affiliated with an extremist, antigovernment conspiracy movement.
Matthew P. Wright, 30, of Henderson, Nevada, wrote the letters to President Trump, members of Nevada’s congressional delegation and assorted federal agencies, including the FBI and CIA, according to media reports.
Calling himself a “humble Patriot,” copies of the letters show Wright put a fingerprint over his signature – a trademark frequently used by antigovernment sovereign citizens.
Above his signature, he wrote, “For where we go one, we go all,” a phrase commonly used on various Internet message boards by followers of QAnon, who believe in a meta-conspiracy theory called “The Storm.”
The wild-eyed, multi-layered conspiracy web casts Trump as a superhero in a secret campaign to expose the Deep State and what is described as evil, leftist, global elites responsible for everything from “pedophile rings” to last year’s mass shooting in Las Vegas.
On Tuesday, Wright’s defense attorney went before a state judge in Kingman, Arizona, asking that his client’s bond be lowered from $25,000.
But instead of lowering the bail, Judge Billy Sipe made note of Wright’s jailhouse letters and then raised his bond to $1 million, the Las Vegas Review Journal reports.
“I find that $25,000 is an extremely low bond for these type of cases,” the judge said, referring to mass shootings and other terrorist crimes. Sipe said he was “gravely concerned” with Wright’s conduct.
Wright, an ex-Marine, was arrested on June 15 after he parked his black, homemade armored vehicle on the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge leading to Hoover Dam.
Traffic was blocked for almost two hours, but no one was injured. There was no exchange of gunfire during the incident, which charging documents described as an act of terrorism.
After blocking traffic, the suspect drove across the bridge where his vehicle tires were flattened by spike strips at a police roadblock. He surrendered moments later when his black armored vehicle became stuck on a dirt road in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.
Authorities reported finding a military-style AR-15 rifle, a handgun, multiple magazines of ammunition and a flash-bang explosive device during a search of the armored vehicle.
Photo: Mohave County Jail
