The Extremism Roundup

Focused on Evidence Instead of Narratives
A weekly compilation of the most important developments in the struggle against radical ideologies

A Word about this week’s Roundup

with Richard Green

CEO, Co-Founder

Clarionproject.org

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Militant-Right and Militant-Left Extremism

Brooklyn Man Charged Over Threats Against ICE Officer

• Nicholas Matthew Scelfo, 27, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was arrested and charged with influencing, impeding, and retaliating against a federal officer by threat after threatening an ICE officer outside a detention facility in Newark, N.J.
• According to court documents, Scelfo threatened to assault and murder the officer and members of the officer’s family during a demonstration outside the facility. Law enforcement identified him through video posted on social media and other evidence.
• Prosecutors said Scelfo admitted after his arrest that he threatened to kill the officer and the officer’s family. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. READ MORE

Staten Island Man Sentenced in Iran-Directed Plot Against Journalist

• Jonathan Loadholt, 37, of Staten Island, N.Y., was sentenced on May 27 to 10 years in prison for his role in a plot directed by the Iranian government to murder Masih Alinejad, a U.S. citizen, journalist, author, and human rights activist who has publicly opposed the Iranian regime.
• Prosecutors said Loadholt pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit stalking and conspiracy to commit money laundering after helping Carlisle Rivera, also known as “Pop,” surveil Alinejad on behalf of Farhad Shakeri, who was acting on instructions from high-ranking members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
• According to the DOJ, Rivera and Loadholt used money from Shakeri to conduct surveillance, purchase a firearm and burner phones, follow Alinejad to a public speaking event at Fairfield University, and repeatedly stalk her Brooklyn home. Loadholt was arrested Nov. 7, 2024, before the plot was carried out. READ MORE

Antifa Mob Violence Reported Outside Turning Point USA Event in San Antonio

• The Daily Signal reported that a protest involving Antifa imagery erupted outside the Turning Point Women’s Leadership Summit in San Antonio, Texas, on June 6 after protesters attempted to get through a police blockade outside the event.
• The report said one man who had been pepper-sprayed after storming police threw a plastic water bottle at an officer, ran, resisted arrest, and was taken to the ground before being removed.
• The Daily Signal also reported that a woman struck an arresting officer with a wooden 6-foot flagpole and fled, while some protesters wearing Antifa imagery chanted threats and slurs aimed at attendees. READ MORE

Islamist Extremism

Three Men Charged in Alleged ISIS Support Plot Targeting U.S. Troops

• Three U.S. citizens – Bisaam Ghafoor, 21, of Leawood, Kan.; Elias Shamsaldeen, 21, of Porterville, Calif.; and Bereen Dzayee, 25, of Lakeside, Calif. – were arrested on June 5 and charged with conspiring to provide material support to ISIS.
• Prosecutors said the three men collectively provided more than $2,000 to an individual they believed was an ISIS member and discussed developing a cryptocurrency scheme to buy rocket-propelled grenades and drones to attack and kill U.S. servicemembers overseas.
•  According to the complaint, the men pledged allegiance to ISIS in Discord chats, voice calls, and other messaging platforms, and promoted violence in ISIS-supporting social media groups, including beheading female soldiers and other atrocities against U.S. servicemembers. READ MORE

New Jersey Man Charged With Trying to Support ISIS

• Mohamed Sagha, 22, of Wayne, N.J., was charged June 8 with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS and was ordered detained after his initial appearance in federal court.
• Prosecutors said Sagha participated from approximately December 2025 to June 2026 in online chat groups where ISIS supporters discussed possible attacks in the United States, including attacks on places of worship. In Oct. 2025, he met a confidential source online, whom he believed was an ISIS member, and discussed helping him attack a place of worship.
• The complaint alleges Sagha also considered his own attack on a National Guard location or Jewish place of worship near Wayne, tried unsuccessfully to travel to ISIS territory in March 2026, and later bought a VPN for the source he believed was an ISIS fighter. READ MORE

Hate Crimes

Bronx Woman Charged in Antisemitic Subway Assault

• Diana Smith, 23, of the Bronx, was arrested after allegedly punching, kicking, and choking a 23-year-old woman on a crowded New York City subway in an incident caught on video, according to the NYPD.
• Police said Smith yelled antisemitic remarks during the incident, including “Jews are eating kids!.. You’re a Jew. I can smell the kids.” Smith then allegedly hit, kicked, and choked the victim, threw her to the ground, and ripped out some of her hair.
• Smith was charged with hate crime assault, hate crime criminal obstruction of breathing, and hate crime aggravated harassment; the victim was taken to a hospital in stable condition. READ MORE

Albuquerque Man Arrested After Synagogue Vandalism

• Rex Crofton, 25, of Albuquerque, N.M., was arrested after police said he smashed windows at Congregation Albert Synagogue in Albuquerque on June 10.
• According to a criminal complaint filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, Crofton was charged with desecration of a church, two counts of criminal damage to property, and a hate crime sentencing enhancement.
• Police said witnesses reported seeing a man break windows at the synagogue’s entrance before driving away. The damage was estimated at approximately $40,000. READ MORE

School Threats

Nashville Woman Charged After Threat Near Church Preschool

• Linda Sloan Perry, 67, of Nashville, Tenn., was charged with threatening to commit an act of mass violence following an incident at Belmont United Methodist Church in Nashville, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.
• Investigators said Perry was near a fenced outdoor play area operated by the church’s weekday school, which serves children from infancy through age 5. Court records state that after hearing a child’s name, Perry allegedly made threatening remarks and continued making statements about shooting and killing people as she walked away from the area.
• Two teachers reported hearing the remarks, and police were called to the scene. Authorities said Perry had left before officers arrived. An arrest warrant was issued on April 24, and jail records show she was booked into the Downtown Detention Center on June 7. READ MORE

North Carolina Teen Charged After Bomb Threat Against High School

• A 15-year-old was charged on June 4 after a bomb threat targeting D.H. Conley High School in Pitt County, N.C., was posted on social media, according to the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office.
• Deputies said they received information on April 27, the date the threat against the school was posted on social media.
• ​Detectives investigated the incident and identified a local 15-year-old as the suspect. Officials said no additional information could be released because of the juvenile’s age. READ MORE

Foreign Influence

FDD Maps Qatar’s $400 Billion Footprint in the United States

• The Foundation for Defense of Democracies reported that Qatar has spent, invested, or donated at least $400 billion in the United States since 2000, based on regulatory filings, business databases, lobbying disclosures, and other public sources.
• The report says Qatari money touches several U.S. industries, including defense, energy, real estate, media, sports, and education, and argues that some transactions are investments while others amount to direct spending on influence.
• FDD said Qatar has surpassed China as the largest foreign funder of American colleges and universities and called for greater scrutiny of foreign capital, including by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. READ MORE

Report Alleges Chinese-Linked Influence Networks Behind Anti-Data Center Campaigns

• A report released by the Bitcoin Policy Institute alleges that campaigns opposing U.S. AI data center construction have been influenced by organizations funded by Shanghai-based businessman Neville Roy Singham, Chinese Communist Party state media, and advocacy networks backed by foreign billionaires.
• ​The report identifies organizations, including CodePink, Tricontinental, and Peoples Dispatch, alleging they promoted narratives opposing U.S. AI infrastructure, while Chinese state media outlets such as CGTN, China Daily, and Global Times advanced similar messaging.
• The report also notes that House committees are investigating whether some Singham-funded organizations should register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and have requested records related to their funding and operations. READ MORE

–Alexis de Tocqueville

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