A Kansas man suspected of being part of a violent extremist group is scheduled to appear before a federal judge after being charged on June 8 with illegally possessing explosive devices in Kansas City, Kansas.
According to court documents, Jarred G. Gilliam, 31, of Kansas City, Kansas, is charged with possessing destructive devices. The complaint alleges that from about June 3, 2025, until about June 3, 2026, Gilliam had three destructive devices commonly known as Molotov Cocktails.
Court documents state that Gilliam is a suspected member of Red Legs, a group accused of promoting violent attacks on government agencies and the military. Authorities say Gilliam used an encrypted messaging application to communicate with other suspected Red Legs members to plan assaults using incendiary devices. Proposed targets included local and federal government entities and property such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Missouri National Guard, and political groups.
The complaint against Gilliam includes several communications sent through the messaging app: “If ice moves to kc, thoughts on an armed response,” “It wouldn’t make sense to panic now, the time for panicking has long passed. Now we must make our peace, arm ourselves, and prepare to do what is necessary,” “After we build our ranks and adequately arm ourselves, we can look into escalation,” “I recommend we start slow at first. Maybe some basic sabotage… We should locate abandoned warehouses where we could potentially secure seized armor… First, we need to find a way to track military shipments; we don’t want to derail the wrong train,” “What are the chances we could get away with using drones to drop incendiary’s [sic] to demolish key infrastructure,” and “I like the idea of using drones carrying cocktails to demolish key structures…Frozen water areas.”
Gilliam’s initial court appearance is scheduled for Monday at 1:30 p.m., before U.S. Magistrate Jennifer B. Wieland in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. During this investigation, several other alleged Red Legs members were identified, including Lake Ethan Roberts of Kansas City, Missouri, who faces prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for possession of unregistered destructive devices.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating this case with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask will prosecute it.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation; all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas advances justice through law enforcement collaboration across cities such as Kansas City, Wichita and Lawrence while offering victim support, civil rights enforcement, public education, community wellness initiatives, law enforcement training and partnerships like Project Safe Neighborhoods, according to the official website.