The Oath Keepers paramilitary group whipped up anger over the election with talk of civil war and directed its members to stock up on guns and ammunition at a Montana store operated by former police officers.
Conspiracy charges against Oath Keeper leadership suggest prosecutors believe they played a central role in sparking the violent Jan. 6 insurrection, and The Daily Beast reported the anti-government group issued a call to arms ahead of the deadly assault on Congress.
"No matter who wins, chaos is sure to follow," the group warned in an email before the election, and promoted a discount on weaponry offered at Western Montana Tactical Training Center.
The gun shop and shooting range was registered until recently to a former sheriff's deputy and current Oath Keeper, and also another man who currently serves on the Montana Highway Patrol.
However, former deputy Greg McWhirter told The Daily Beast he was selling the business, which should have new owners Friday, and state Trooper Christopher Benson told the website that he stopped working at the store before the election and was not affiliated at all with the Oath Keepers, and neither man appears to have taken part in the Capitol insurrection.
The Oath Keepers blasted members with email calls to arms in the weeks before the election, warning of violence from communists and Antifa activists, and those emails were then distributed on pro-Trump forum TheDonald.win.
"We all saw the debate," read on email. "Former Vice President [Joe] Biden is completely oblivious to the activities of his followers, the far left. As soon as he said 'ANTIFA' was an idea not an organization, it became clear, he has no intentions of using his influence to restrain the violence of the far left. So we must double our efforts to prepare."
One "verified buyer" wrote a review of the gun shop on Jan. 12, a week after the Capitol riot, and said they "appreciate the Oath Keepers discount."
A spokesperson for the Oath Keepers did not return a request for comment, but McWhirter said the discount was "just like anything else."
"You're able to get a coupon from a coupon book," he told The Daily Beast. "It's the same thing. They [the Oath Keepers] asked about it, it's the same thing… You can go to Groupon and get a coupon for Disneyland, it's the same sh*t."
