Massachusetts police take eleven 'heavily armed men' into custody after they claim to 'not recognize our laws': report

According to a report from ABC News and a series of tweets from the Massachusetts State Police Twitter account, nine men described as "heavily-armed" were taken into custody early Saturday morning after police questioned them and they fled into the woods that led to a stand-off hours later. (UPDATE: Police later reported 11 men were taken into custody.)

The report states that, "The incident unfolded around 1:30 a.m. when a state trooper came across a group of 8 to 10 people refueling on the side of the I-95 highway in Wakefield, a suburb of Boston. The group was dressed in military-style uniforms, carried tactical gear like body cameras and helmets and had long guns slung over their shoulders," adding that the men claimed "to be from a group that does not recognize our laws."

ABC added the police issued an intial statement saying, "Approximately 8 males fled into the woods carrying rifles and handguns and appear to be contained in the wooded area adjacent to the highway. No threats were made, but these men should be considered armed and dangerous."

A police spokesperson stated that the men explained they were traveling to Maine from Rhode Island for "training," and identified themselves as belonging to a group called "Moorish American Arms."

Two men were taken into custody immediately, with the Mass. Police Twitter account reporting later, "Remaining suspects on highway have been taken into custody by MSP Special Tactical Operations Team. 7 additional suspects being transported for booking. We will now conduct sweeps of their 2 vehicles and woods. Total of 9 in custody counting the initial 2 arrests."

An updated report from MassLive states: "A man who identified himself to police as the leader of the group said on a video recorded after the encounter that he 'instructed my men to get out peacefully. I greeted your man with a handshake,' he said, of speaking with the trooper.He claims in a series of videos the group was following federal law and should be allowed to travel across state lines with their weapons.A firearms license is required to possess or carry firearms in Massachusetts. For non-residents of Massachusetts, a non-resident license to carry firearms must be obtained through the Firearms Records Bureau."

Police later updated the number taken into custody to 11.

You can see some tweets below: