March 29, 2024

Militia members file appeals in southwest Kansas bomb case

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Three militia members facing decades in prison for their roles in a foiled plot to massacre Somali Muslims in southwest Kansas have all now appealed their convictions and sentences.

Attorneys representing Gavin Wright and Curtis Allen on Wednesday filed separate notices of appeal to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Patrick Stein filed his appeal on Monday.

Jurors convicted them of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction and conspiracy against civil rights for a 2016 scheme to blow up a mosque and apartments housing Somalis in Garden City.

A judge last month sentenced Stein, the alleged ringleader, to 30 years in prison. Allen, who drafted a manifesto for the group, got 25 years. Wright, who helped make and test explosives at his mobile home business, received 26 years.