Members of the Aryan Strikeforce were indicted in April on drug and weapons charges.
Five reported members of the Aryan Strikeforce -- a white supremacist group based in and around the Lehigh Valley -- are still awaiting federal trial after their arrests and indictments following an April raid in Phillipsburg.
Supremacist and neo-Nazi groups are in the national spotlight following deadly violence last weekend during their rally in Charlottesville, Va., that was billed as a march to "Unite the Right," though politicians of both parties have denounced the groups.
The leader of the Aryan Strikeforce, Josh "Hatchet" Steever of Phillipsburg, wanted to become a galvanizing force in the skinhead world, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Josh "Hatchet" Steever led the Aryan Strikeforce in Phillipsburg. (Facebook screenshot) Five people -- Steever; Henry Lambert Baird, 49, of Allentown; Justin Daniel "Rocko" Lough, 26, of Waynesboro, Va.; Jacob Mark "Boots" Robards, 40, of Bethlehem, and Connor Drew Dykes, 20, of Silver Spring, Md. -- were arrested and indicted following an FBI raid April 13 on Steever's home at 487 S. Main St.
They are charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S., racketeering, money laundering, dealing with unregistered interstate commerce, transfer of machine gun parts and firearms by convicted felons, and two counts of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. The group allegedly met with undercover agents to procure methamphetamine and weapons, and stored their gains at locations in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia -- including Phillipsburg and Allentown.
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A July trial was originally scheduled at federal court in Williamsport. The case against all five defendants was continued to Sept. 11 to allow the defense more time for discovery and pre-trial motions.
It's possible the defense could ask for a further continuance, rescheduling the trial again, said a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
The Aryan Strikeforce was active in Phillipsburg in 2016, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Its mission -- according to a screed on its now-defunct website -- involves "the preservation of our race, heritage, and our way of life," including through use of violence. It said that remaining "faceless" would "strike fear into our opponents."
A screenshot of photos that were posted on the Aryan Strikeforce website. The website included a page for a "white nationalist alliance" among its photos and email addresses for organizers. No one on the site was identified.
The Aryan Strikeforce website domain was no longer active as of Tuesday, with a GoDaddy page appearing in its place.
The Associated Press reported Monday that GoDaddy was terminating service for The Daily Stormer, a white supremacist and neo-Nazi website, after that site posted a derogatory story about the woman killed at the Charlottesville rally.
It was not immediately clear if the Aryan Strikeforce website was removed for a similar reason, or if their service agreement had expired while its members were imprisoned.
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.