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The Base member Sentenced in Tuscola County

LANSING – A member of The Base – a national white supremacist group that advocates for violence against the government – was sentenced by a Tuscola County judge, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced today.

Wednesday afternoon, Judge Amy Gierhardt deferred jail time and sentenced Tristan Webb to a lengthy probation term with strict supervision from the Court.

Specifically, Judge Gierhardt imposed the following sentence:

  • Count 2, Gang Felonies: Probation 5 years.
  • Count 3, Conspiracy to Train with Firearms for a Civil Disorder: Probation 3 years, 1 year of jail deferred.
  • Count 4, Felony Firearm: 2-year delay of sentence consecutive to the other counts.  

Count 1, a charge of larceny against Webb, was dismissed as part of a plea agreement reached in May. 

“My department will hold accountable any individual that commits crimes as part of a domestic terrorist organization,” said Nessel.  “Make no mistake, these are violent gangs intent on harming others and their actions will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Webb, 19, became involved with The Base when he was 17 years old.  In late 2019, Webb hosted a “hate camp” at his property for the Michigan cell of The Base. Members of The Base, “Invictus Youth,” and “Aryan Resistance” attended. “Hate camp” is a term used by the group to describe firearms tactical training where various paramilitary-style techniques were taught to participants.  Soon after, Webb underwent a vetting process to become a full member of The Base.

The convictions secured against Webb and other members of The Base in Tuscola County marked the first in Michigan history that conspiring to train for a civil disorder was charged.

Founded in 2018, The Base – which is the literal translation of “Al-Qaeda” in English – is a white supremacy gang that openly advocates for violence and criminal acts against the U.S., and purports to be training for a race war to establish white ethnonationalist rule in areas of the U.S., including Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The group also traffics in Nazi ideology and extreme anti-Semitism.

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