Bellevue Police, Washington have arrested a member of the “Sovereign Citizen” movement, traveling on public roads with a fake license plate. The details of the arrest have been made public on the department’s official blog.
The movement is comprised of so-called “free” individuals who oppose all forms of government and authority. Though it’s most prominent in the U.S., it can also be found in other countries. The “Sovereign Citizens” will refuse to pay taxes, obey police commands, or respect the law – save for their own interpretation of it.
The driver now in custody in Bellevue, Washington, had slapped a fake, homemade license plate on his Chevrolet and hit the road. As you can see from the attached image, his plate now read, “PRIVATE. No driver license or insurance required. Not for commerce use – private mode of travel.”
An officer noticed the strange plate and pulled him over. As it turns out, the fake license plate was the top of the iceberg, because the dude was completely outside the law in all regards. He didn’t even own the car he was driving.
“Suspect refused to provide identification, Registration, or Insurance,” the police report says. “The Officer discovered that the vehicle was unregistered with the title failing to have been transferred. The suspect refused to exit the vehicle after being asked to numerous times. The suspect was eventually arrested for the criminal traffic offenses and for obstructing an officer. The suspect’s vehicle was Impounded.”
Police qualify the “Sovereign Citizen” movement as domestic terrorism and officers are instructed to act in such situations cautiously, because members are prone to being aggressive to cops. Recent surveys ranked the risk of terrorism from this group higher than the risk from other groups, like Islamists, racists or Neo-Nazis. Fortunately, no one was hurt on this particular occasion.
The driver now in custody in Bellevue, Washington, had slapped a fake, homemade license plate on his Chevrolet and hit the road. As you can see from the attached image, his plate now read, “PRIVATE. No driver license or insurance required. Not for commerce use – private mode of travel.”
An officer noticed the strange plate and pulled him over. As it turns out, the fake license plate was the top of the iceberg, because the dude was completely outside the law in all regards. He didn’t even own the car he was driving.
“Suspect refused to provide identification, Registration, or Insurance,” the police report says. “The Officer discovered that the vehicle was unregistered with the title failing to have been transferred. The suspect refused to exit the vehicle after being asked to numerous times. The suspect was eventually arrested for the criminal traffic offenses and for obstructing an officer. The suspect’s vehicle was Impounded.”
Police qualify the “Sovereign Citizen” movement as domestic terrorism and officers are instructed to act in such situations cautiously, because members are prone to being aggressive to cops. Recent surveys ranked the risk of terrorism from this group higher than the risk from other groups, like Islamists, racists or Neo-Nazis. Fortunately, no one was hurt on this particular occasion.