By Greg Grisolano
ggrisolano@joplinglobe.com
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A McDonald County man, who authorities say has ties to violent white supremacists charged in an Arizona bombing, will be held without bond.
Robert N. Joos, of rural McDonald County, on Wednesday in Springfield was ordered to be held without bond on a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
A spokesman for the U.S. district attorney’s office for Western Missouri said the office was pleased with the ruling.
“Basically our argument was that (Joos) is a danger to the community, and the court agreed,” said Don Ledford, public relations director for the office. “He’s a convicted felon who was found with firearms. He’s linked to violent white supremacists. There’s several reasons.”
Ledford said the next step would be for the case to go before a grand jury for an indictment. He said no schedule had been set for those proceedings.
Federal prosecutors say an undercover investigation found that people involved in the white-supremacist movement met for survival training at Joos’ property.
Chief Magistrate Judge James C. England said in his ruling that a search of Joos’ property in McDonald County uncovered more than a dozen firearms, blasting caps, gunpowder and fuses.
Joos was arrested as part of an investigation into a 2004 mail bombing in Scottsdale, Ariz., that injured the director of a diversity office. Prosecutors allege that the first call one of the suspects made after the bombing was to Joos.
Joos has a 1997 felony conviction for unlawful use of a weapon and a 2004 conviction for operating a motor vehicle without a valid license.
Joos at one point refused to obtain a driver license, saying during a court hearing in 2002 that it was against his religion, and that he could “make no covenant with the heathen government.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Church leader
Joos in 2004 led the Sacerdotal Church of David on a 200-acre farm near the community of Cyclone, between Powell and Pineville on Big Sugar Creek.
Local News
Defendant being held without bond
- Local News
-
-
City wants to buy weather radios for those without
Phil Jones had been working on a construction project outside his house all day on May 22 and was unaware that a tornado watch had been issued. Once he was inside, though, his weather radio went off, and he learned that a warning had been issued.
-
Cold air headed this way
The Arctic front that passed over Missouri this morning will bring dangerously cold temperatures to the region tonight and Saturday.
-
Miami, Okla., man dies along I-44
A 27-year-old Miami, Okla., who appeared to be walking along I-44 in an attempt to get help after wrecking his car, is dead after being hit by a pickup truck.
-
Mo. presidential primary sets low mark in turnout
Just 8 percent of Missouri’s registered voters cast ballots in this week’s presidential primary.
-
Okla. court upholds man’s life sentence in deaths
An Oklahoma appeals court has upheld the life in prison sentences of a man convicted of two counts of first-degree murder for the shotgun slayings of two men at a Sperry residence.
-
Architects present preliminary JHS plans at community meeting
Reaction appeared mostly supportive Thursday night among the roughly 50 people who attended a community meeting at which architects presented their preliminary site plans for the future combined Joplin High School and Franklin Technology Center.
-
Confessed shooter testifies against co-defendants in Pittsburg murder case
Rickey Smith testified Thursday that as he came in the back door of Ryan Bailey’s home in Pittsburg with a 9 mm pistol in his hand, Bailey looked up from the couch in his living room.
-
School district’s proposed street-closing plan questioned
Plans to close some streets near the proposed Joplin High School drew questions, including a challenge from a former Joplin mayor, during a public hearing this week.
-
Mike Pound: Spirit of competition evident during double-overtime game
When I played basketball in high school, I played in several very close games.
Now, some people who may have known me in high school are probably laughing right now and saying, “What Mike meant to say is that when he was in high school, he came very close to playing in some games.” -
Neosho council approves new golf cart contract
The purchase of golf carts was back on the agenda this week for the Neosho City Council. City Attorney Steve Hays said there were errors in the financing terms that were part of a bid approved last month for the purchase of 55 gas-powered carts from E-Z-Go for $144,195, so the purchase of a new fleet was rebid.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens
Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag
Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs
Expert: Removing LA School's Staff 'Appropriate'
Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames
LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal
$25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses
Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines
Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States
Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration
Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
