Three men were arrested in Gaston County, North Carolina after allegedly amassing an arsenal and making their own bombs out of fear that the government was about to enact martial law, the Asheville Citizen Times reported.
Federal investigators said two of the suspects, 50-year-old Walter Eugene Litteral and 30-year-old Christopher Todd Campbell, voiced their skepticism regarding the Operation Jade Helm military training exercises, which conspiracy theorists believe is the prelude to a military takeover.
READ MORE: For the second time this week, white man opens fire on Jade Helm training site in Mississippi
The FBI began investigating the two men, along with 41-year-old Christopher James Barker, last month after receiving a tip that Barker and Litteral were trying to make homemade explosives, which the latter reportedly called "game changers." The bombs were allegedly made by filling tennis balls with ball bearings, then covering them in nails and coffee cans.
WTVD-TV reported that Litteral bought body armor, Kevlar helmets, and radios. He also reportedly planned to buy an assault rifle and ammunition for Barker, who was ineligible to do so himself because of prior convictions for possessing cocaine and stolen goods.
The three men reportedly planned to test their weapons out in Shelby, with Litteral allegedly saying, "It is going to be great."
After being arrested on Saturday, the three suspects face federal charges of conspiring to violate federal laws regarding firearms and explosive devices. Campbell also faces a separate weapons charge. They are due back in court on Thursday for detention hearings. It was unclear as of Tuesday night whether they had attorneys.
Reports of the arrest came on the same day that two men allegedly opened fire on a "Jade Helm 15" training site in Mississippi.
Watch WTVD's report on the arrest, as aired on Tuesday, below.
