Oak Creek man, alleged member of neo-Nazi group 'The Base,' charged with vandalizing Racine synagogue

A 22-year-old Oak Creek man charged with vandalizing a Racine synagogue was arrested Friday as part of a nationwide investigation into The Base, a neo-Nazi, racially motivated extremist group, federal prosecutors announced Friday.

Yousef O. Barasneh spray-painted swastikas and anti-Semitic words on Beth Israel Sinai Congregation in Racine last September and plotted other acts of vandalism against minority residents with the hate group, according to a federal criminal complaint.

Court records indicate he was arrested Friday, but not that he had appeared in court. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office said it could not provide a booking photo, and Barasneh did not appear as a current inmate at the Milwaukee County Jail.

The FBI has been investigating the group for months and found it active in Wisconsin.

In June, recruitment flyers for the group were posted at Marquette University. The next month, the group had an armed training session in northern Wisconsin and posted photos to social media, court records say.

And the day before the Racine synagogue was vandalized, a synagogue in Michigan was tagged with similar racist graffiti.

According to court records:

One of the group's ringleaders became an informant and gave investigators details over the past several months. The documents in Barasneh's case do not name the person but note he has been federally charged in another state for his role.

The man admitted he directed the group to vandalize minority-owned properties, calling it “Operation Kristallnacht," a reference to Nazi Germany and the night Jewish homes, hospitals and other properties were ransacked and destroyed.

The man told investigators he said: "If there’s a window that wants to be broken, don’t be shy.”

He said a man known as Josef or Joseph in the group's chat room later sent a message with a news article about the Racine synagogue vandalism and claimed credit for the damage.

The informant said he never met Barasneh in person.

Undercover agent joins group in Georgia

As part of the larger investigation, an undercover FBI agent got access to the members-only chat room and later participated in the group's meeting in Silver Creek, Georgia.

Barasneh was seen going to and from that meeting, which included a goat sacrifice and training on firearms, grappling and basic medical training. Investigators got records from his hotel in Georgia and confirmed the SUV he was seen driving was his, even monitoring him in Wisconsin last week.

Barasneh was charged with one count of conspiring to violate citizens’ rights to use property free from threats and intimidation. If convicted, Barasneh faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

His arrest was among at least six others in the U.S. Thursday and Friday of men authorities believe were advancing The Base's goal of accelerating the collapse of the federal government, inciting a race war and establishing a white ethnostate, according to one agent's affidavit.

In Maryland, authorities on Thursday arrested three men. ages 33, 27 and 19, living in Maryland and Delaware who were also purportedly members of the group. They were charged with weapons violations and with transporting and harboring an alien, as one of the men entered the U.S. from Canada illegally last summer.

Federal authorities said the men were discussing traveling to a pro-gun rally in Richmond, Virginia, on Monday and firing shots from different locations in hopes of creating chaos.

Three more men were arrested Friday in north Georgia, also said to be members of The Base. The Floyd County Police Department told news outlets the group had plans to murder a married couple. The Base believed the couple had leadership roles in the far-left group Antifa. Authorities say The Base also conducted field and leadership training on 105 acres in Silver Creek. The Georgia suspects are 19, 21 and 25 years old.

The Wisconsin case was investigated by the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

"This demonstrates the FBI’s vigilance in investigating individuals who attempt to dismiss and violate others’ Constitutional rights," FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert E. Hughes said in a news release.

U.S. Attorney Matthew Krueger added, "The United States is committed to vigorous enforcement of civil rights statutes against individuals motivated by extremist ideologies."

Contact Ashley Luthern at ashley.luthern@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @aluthern.