Neo-Nazi arrested in traffic stop had bulletproof vest and ghost gun: report

On Tuesday, VICE News reported that an armed man with ties to neo-Nazi extremist groups was arrested during a traffic stop in New York in late November.

"Luke Kenna, 43, who has a history of posting support of white supremacist groups and domestic terrorist manifestos online, was arrested during a traffic stop on November 26, court documents say," reported Mack Lamoureux. "When Kenna was pulled over, police said they found he had a loaded 'ghost gun'' — an untraceable firearm usually built at home — tucked into his pants and wearing body armor. He was charged with being in possession of a loaded firearm, the unlawful wearing of body armor, and driving without a license. "

Court documents suggest Kenna may have been pulled over for a tail light violation. He has reportedly pleaded not guilty to all charges.

"Online articles from anti-fascist researchers have highlighted numerous neo-Nazi links to Kenna," said the report. "On some of his publicly available Instagram posts viewed by VICE News, the man has the sonnenrad (a runic symbol popular with modern neo-Nazis) proudly featured multiple times, a German Imperial flag, and other images such as a person with a Totenkopf (the death’s head symbol popular in Nazi Germany) for a head riding a surfboard with a sonnenrad and the words 'surf the kali yuga' a term popular with esoteric neo-Nazis."

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"Kenna also appears to be connected to the Wolves of Vinland, a group that has been described by the SPLC as a Neo-Volkisch hate group," said the report. "Neo-Völkisch adherents base their spirituality on the survival of the European race and tend to lean into certain forms of paganism. This often involves runic symbols and rituals. Kenna ran a small business that sells weapons and offers tactical training. The runes can be seen in the name of Kenna’s company, which incorporates a runic symbol named after a god from Germanic mythology into its name."

This comes as America has grappled with increasingly overt and public displays of anti-Semitism, most prominently former President Donald Trump's recent Mar-a-Lago meeting with far-right rapper Kanye "Ye" West and neo-Nazi livestreamer Nick Fuentes, both of whom have professed admiration for Adolf Hitler.