WELCOME TO GRANT COUNTY ND NEWS-WE NEVER BACK DOWN-WE NEVER GIVE UP-WE NEVER FAIL
CITY OF LEITH
NOTICE OF TAX EQUALIZATION MEETING
The City of Leith tax equalization meeting will be held on Wednesday April 7, 2021 at 6:30 pm in Leith City Hall.
The regular City Council meeting will follow.
Reva Weekes
Leith City Auditor
Elgin City Auditor
TERRORIST CRAIG COBB'S USED CAR LOT & FIREWOOD FOR SALE
Photo By Grant County ND News By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - July 10, 2017
Stop By East 2nd Street & 3rd Avenue East In Sherwood, North Dakota For "Cheap Deals"
THE RUSSIAN CONNECTION TO NORTH DAKOTA
By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - June 25, 2017
By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - June 25, 2017
By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - June 25, 2017
Maria Finoshina...a Russia Today war correspondent took time out in 2015 from her reporting on the war in Syria to contact this editor and track down the now "CONVICTED NAZI TERRORIST CRAIG COBB" for an interview.
After giving her his cell phone number she tried to contact him but failed and eventually drove to Sherwood, North Dakota where he lives hoping to catch him.
She did indeed meet with him outside of his dilapidated house and conducted her interview which can be seen along with 3 other video segments on the City of Leith "Videos" page by CLICKING HERE.
Maria is currently in and out of Syria filming a documentary on the "Children Of Syria" and you can view a trailer and a short film below of her production.
It should be noted that although Russia is supporting the Syrian regime with war materials Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is preventing her from continuing to film her documentary. Hypocrisy has no limits it seems.
EDITOR NOTE
By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - June 25, 2017
By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - June 25, 2017
Many people in our state may not like what I write about or film or photograph but if someone doesn't do it then the people of North Dakota will be in the dark and unprepared for what may or may not come next. Just look at the pipeline protest. North Dakota sure as hell wasn't ready for that.
My coverage of the now "CONVICTED NAZI TERRORIST CRAIG COBB" during the Leith crisis, my coverage and participation along with the Mayor of Leith Ryan Schock and Leith City Councilman Lee Cook of bringing the former Grant County States Attorney Todd Schwarz up on charges before the North Dakota Supreme Court Disciplinary Board, my coverage of the Grant County Commission meetings with video for over two years, my involvement and coverage in the recall election of former Grant County Commissioners Keith Payne and Don Roth did not go unnoticed as they are all now GONE from Grant County and its government.
Without the news coverage of Bismarck Tribune reporter Lauren Donovan and Blake Nicholson of the Associated Press much of what I accomplished would never had gotten into the main stream media.
While helping people around the world may be a noble cause we cannot allow undocumented people from war torn areas of the middle east without first vetting them extensively.
The children should come first with their parents and single military age men should be denied entry into our country.
I saw so many of the children of Vietnam having their lives destroyed by the communists of Russia, China, North Korea and yes, even the United States during my multiple tours. Of course this is just my opinion.
The news we get from the main stream media does not begin to cover the real truth about the war(s) in the middle east and so we should resort to getting our news from all sources including the Russians, Breitbart News and the Daily Mail out of the United Kingdom.
Much of the news media outlets in our country are run by ratings and advertising dollars and not true journalism. Of course this is still my opinion.
"CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC NAZI TERRORIST CRAIG COBB" GIVES OWNERSHIP OF BURNED DOWN NOME, ND CHURCH BACK TO ORIGINAL OWNER
By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - May 12, 2017
That's all the news this editor (a former victim of his terrorism) will write. (Rest In Hell Cobb - I know you visit this website)
"ONE MORE YEAR LEFT" (PART 2 CONTINUED)
Girlfriend Of White Supremacist Files Restraining Order Against Leith Website Operator
Girlfriend Of White Supremacist Files Restraining Order Against Leith Website Operator
Girlfriend Of White Supremacist Files Restraining Order Against Leith Website Operator
By: Mike Nowatzki, Forum News Service, INFORUM (Written December 5, 2013)
LEITH, N.D. - The girlfriend of one of two white supremacists charged with terrorizing residents of Leith has filed a restraining order against the man who maintains an unofficial website about the town.
Webmaster Greg Bruce said a Grant County sheriff's deputy served him with the temporary restraining order Wednesday afternoon.
The order bars Bruce from having contact with Deborah Henderson except through an attorney, or from saying anything slanderous, harassing or threatening about her or her family on the www.leithnd.com website or any other Internet source.
"Myself and other residents of the city of Leith are terrorized by these people and I am now being victimized again by being told to keep my mouth shut. How does that work?" Bruce wrote on the website, where he posted a copy of the restraining order.
In a phone interview Thursday night, Henderson said Bruce is "constantly saying really terrible things against me."
"He's just harassing me to the point where me and my children don't feel safe," she said, noting the website's homepage has a link to a report for suspected child abuse or neglect that she believes is aimed at her family.
Henderson and her boyfriend, Kynan Dutton, relocated with their children in October from Oregon to Leith, where they moved in with Craig Cobb, the white supremacist who has purchased property in the city of about 20 residents and invited like-minded people to join him with hopes of creating an all-white enclave.
Dutton, 29, and Cobb, 62, each face seven felony counts of terrorizing for allegedly approaching Leith residents with loaded firearms last month. Dutton also is charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct stemming from his behavior during a Leith City Council meeting Oct. 18.
Both men are being held without bond and are scheduled to appear Monday in Grant County District Court in Carson.
Henderson continues to live in Cobb's house with her three children ages 6 to 11. She said two of Cobb's acquaintances recently came to the house and removed all of Cobb's belongings, saying Cobb plans to relocate to Louisiana when his legal troubles in North Dakota are resolved and that the house will eventually be signed over to her.
Henderson said she has "never done anything to anyone in town," and that she's just trying to raise her children in peace. She said she's not associated with the National Socialist Movement as her boyfriend was, and considers herself a separatist, saying, "I just know from experience with trial and error that it's better to stay with your own."
The restraining order against Bruce states that he may appear Monday to contest the order signed by Judge Thomas Schneider. Bruce said he had planned to be in court anyway as a witness and victim in the terrorizing cases, and he said the city's hired attorney, Thomas Kelsch, may appear to represent him if necessary.
Kelsch did not return a phone message Thursday.
Henderson said she hopes to get the order extended.
Bruce, who lives in New Leipzig, said the restraining order infringes upon his First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and freedom of the press. He said he's never said anything slanderous about Henderson though he added, "I've come close" and he said he plans to continue writing about her.
"I'm under the impression I can write anything I want as long as it's not slanderous or libelous," he said.
Bruce said his legal representation, if needed, will be paid from the Leith Legal Defense Fund. The group UnityND is holding a spaghetti supper to benefit the fund from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday at United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck.
Cobb Taken Into Custody For Toting Guns In Leith
Girlfriend Of White Supremacist Files Restraining Order Against Leith Website Operator
Girlfriend Of White Supremacist Files Restraining Order Against Leith Website Operator
Photo By Gregory Bruce - Broken Arrow Productions
Courtesy Of The Bismarck Tribune - By Lauren Donovan (Written - November 17, 2013)
LEITH, N.D. - Craig Cobb and Kynan Dutton were taken to jail in handcuffs Saturday afternoon, after Leith citizens called 911 for help because the two men were confronting them with guns in a threatening and intimidating manner.
The two men are neo-Nazis and moved in take over Leith's government, posting new signs with ugly racial slurs and flying swastika flags on Cobb's property in town.
Their use of guns with Leith residents raises three months of tension to its highest level yet, and Grant County Sheriff Steve Bay said residents should feel at ease at least for now that the men are in custody at the Mercer County jail in Stanton.
The sheriff said because it's the weekend it could take time for the paperwork, but he's assembling evidence for three separate charges of terrorizing against Cobb, 62, and Dutton, 29.
Dutton is already on bond for a charge of disorderly conduct for drunken behavior in Leith and further charges could violate his bond conditions.
Bay said Dutton's rifle and Cobb's shotgun had not been confiscated and he planned to attempt to recover them from Cobb's residence later Saturday.
Deborah Dutton remained at Cobb's house with five children, ages 4 through teens. She accompanied the men around town, but carried a cell phone to record the interactions, not a weapon.
She said she had nothing to say when contacted by the Tribune.
In a text message to the Tribune before he was taken into custody, Cobb said, "Because of the many violences (sic) and harassments against we (sic) and the children, we have commenced armed patrols of Leith." In a follow up text, Cobb said he has new plans to name some of his property the "Adolph Hitler Pvt. Park of Leith."
The sheriff said he knew that "sooner or later" the situation would escalate and said he's relieved that no shots were fired.
Leith City Councilman Lee Cook was involved in one of the incidents Saturday. He said he and Gregory Bruce had just arrived at Cook's home when Cobb and Dutton came over with guns and stood at the edge of his property. Cobb lives across the gravel street.
He said Dutton had his finger on the rifle trigger, but said the guns weren't aimed directly at them.
Both Cook and Bruce, who's been posting updates about the neo-Nazi activities on a Leithnd.com website, called 911. Bruce took photographs of Cobb and Dutton and submitted them for publication with this story.
Another Leith resident, Miller Ferrie, told Cook that Cobb and Dutton, both carrying guns, followed her to her house Saturday afternoon. She told Cook she was in hysterics when she called 911 because her husband came outside and words were being exchanged.
For safety reasons, Cook moved his family out of Leith weeks ago. He said he was in town to install security cameras on his home.
Cook said he doesn't think Leith is peaceful, even with the two men in jail.
He said Cobb was cocky and arrogant when he approached with the gun.
"He thought he was something. He thinks he owns this town," Cook said.
He said his reaction to the men being in custody is bittersweet.
"They deserve more than what they get. I know it's not over. Cobb is obviously desperate," Cook said.
Cobb is a hate crimes fugitive from Canada with a long history of association with hate groups and white separatist believers. He purchased 13 properties in Leith and plans to take over the town government with other neo-Nazis.
LEE COOK SPEAKS OUT ABOUT HIS MURDERED DAUGHTER
Girlfriend Of White Supremacist Files Restraining Order Against Leith Website Operator
LEE COOK SPEAKS OUT ABOUT HIS MURDERED DAUGHTER
Photo By Lauren Donovan - Bismarck Tribune
Besides implicating Cook in the murder, Cobb posts details of the murder, pictures of the murderer, Cook's tax statements, and names and contact information for Cook's family and friends.
Cobb said his attacks on Cook and others in town are fair play, the result of being put under duress.
"I'm about at the point of telling them where to get off. I'm not interested in their abuse," Cobb said. "If that's personal, what they've done to me is very personal."
Mark Potok is editor of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Report and Hatewatch blog. Cobb has been on their watch lists for years.
Potok said vicious, personal attacks are trademarks of Cobb's and neo-Nazis in general.
"Cobb is a particularly vicious human being. He comes off like Geppetto (from Pinocchio), a hunched over old man with slightly amusing ideas. But this is the man who moved to Estonia so he could post videos of Russian neo-Nazis sawing heads off non-white immigrants. He really is that terrible," Potok said.
He said Cobb is filled with rage. "It never leaves him. He's happy to make Cook miserable," he said.
Cook asked the Tribune to make public the story of his daughter's murder so it's no longer a secret weapon Cobb can use against him on websites popular with racists and other haters.
This week, Cook talked about the murder openly and not without obvious difficulty.
Krystle Cook was bludgeoned with a baseball bat by her mother's boyfriend, Mike Andes. The Cooks, who lived in Longview, Wash., were divorced. The murderer, with help from male relatives, buried her body in a tree row and poured bags of lime over her to hasten decomposition.
It took nearly a year to unravel the murder and more than two years for it to come to trial, after which Andes was sentenced to 25 years in prison. The motive was apparently to get the daughter out of the way to get closer to her mother and her mother's money, Cook said.
Cook said his successful real estate and property development business, worth $5 million, was in shambles and summoning the will to live every day took all he had.
He met his wife, Heather Cook, through church and they eventually decided to make a clean break from Washington.
"We moved away to get a different perspective here," he said. Cook's mother has a family connection in the Richardton area, so he started there and in July 2012, found an available, affordable house in Leith.
Their three children could ride horse with neighbor kids and they were living the quiet prairie life they'd imagined.
"We loved it. The people are so good. You can find land, but not people like this," Cook said.
This past July, they purchased a different home in Leith, one with a barn, a shop and a little more land. It put them right across the street from Cobb, who Cook said seemed strange, but was rarely around.
Several weeks later, everything changed, when Cobb's plans to populate Leith with other neo-Nazis and take over the town government went public, first in the Tribune.
Within two days, Cobb was fired from his job and living in his Leith home more or less fulltime. He has since been joined by two other white supremacists - one is Kynan Dutton, of Oregon, whose wife, Deborah Dutton, returned to Leith Thursday with three children. She had fled and left two children behind when Kynan Dutton exploded into a drunken rampage at a Leith city meeting three weeks ago. He has since been charged with disorderly conduct.
Cook said he's no longer comfortable leaving his family in Leith when he's at work, so they are all living in a camper closer to his job site.
"I wouldn't feel so vulnerable if (my daughter's murder) hadn't happened. That's why I'm so protective. It's magnified 100 times because of what I've experienced," Cook said.
Cook said he believes Cobb is more dangerous now because his plan is failing. Leith is working with an attorney, financed through donations to a defense fund, and put a moratorium on building until it has zoning and a land use plan. It's also taking steps to require water and sewer, which Cobb doesn't have hooked up in his home.
"They're imperiously dictating how I'm going to live," Cobb said.
Cobb has invited former federal prisoners to join him in Leith. "I received 6 or 7 letters from prison today when I picked up my held mail. We seek all politically, racially aware Whites - this includes combat war vets - Viet Nam, Iraq, Afghanistan and long time incarcerated whites (especially from federal prisons). We intend to collectively and cooperatively run our own affairs and become the political majority in Leith via the American way - the ballot box.
We very much need your help and active participation," he said in a White Nations post.
Potok agrees that Cobb is dangerous, but says, "He's not a big man in the movement. He's a loathsome individual, but he's not a leader. He leads nothing." It's why Potok believes Cobb's plan for Leith "is ludicrous on its face."
Still, Potok said he doesn't discount anything.
"Anyone who traffics in images of human brutality is someone to be careful with.
Common sense dictates you've got to treat him like a rabid dog and he is a rabid dog," he said.
Cook said he's inspired to remain in Leith because people all around the world are supporting the town in its stand against being taken over by white supremacists.
"I'm not glad I'm in the middle of this, but I'm not a quitter. Our refusal to give up is the bottom line," Cook said.
Leith City Council OKs Building Moratorium
Leith City Council OKs Building Moratorium
LEE COOK SPEAKS OUT ABOUT HIS MURDERED DAUGHTER
Courtesy Of The Bismarck Tribune - By Lauren Donovan (Written - October 27, 2013)
The city of Leith approved a building moratorium and took other steps Sunday night to prevent white supremacists from living on property without sewer and water and squatting in tents and trailers. Law enforcement was only required to remove Craig Cobb from sitting at the city council's meeting table and to intervene when Cobb told members of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe they were off the reservation and should go back home.
Cobb, a hate crimes fugitive from Canada with extremist neo-Nazi views, purchased a home and 12 other lots and is encouraging others to join him in taking over the town. The new ordinances will require Cobb to put water and sewer into his house, where three other white male supremacists and two young children are also living with space heaters and no working furnace.
The city approved the second reading of a moratorium that prevents any new building until planning and zoning is put into place. It held first readings on the adoption of a uniform building code, on a requirement that residences must have water and sewer and an ordinance that prevents tents and campers from being on a lot for more than 10 consecutive days.
Under the ordinance, anyone without water and sewer will have 30 days to come into compliance, or face fines or possible condemnation. Cobb said the town got by for decades without the ordinances. "Why now? Is it a wonderful coincidence that the moment I show up these are necessary?
It's patently unfair," Cobb said. He said he may rename Leith the "Village of the Damned" when he takes it over. He said residents are "evil and nasty." The meeting was attended by about 50 people, mostly Leith residents and supporters.
Cobb Makes It Personal
Leith City Council OKs Building Moratorium
Cobb Makes It Personal
Courtesy Of The Bismarck Tribune - By Lauren Donovan (Written - November 1, 2013)
Lee Cook moved to Leith not to escape his past, but to move beyond it. He never imagined that he would be in top fold headlines once again, or that the 2000 murder of his young daughter would be used to goad him and open old wounds.
Cook is a city councilman in Leith, which for nearly three months the tiny Grant County town has been the focus of national and international news coverage about plans by white supremacists to take over the town's government. Leith is fighting back with new ordinances, but white supremacist Craig Cobb has moved the confrontation into extremely personal realms with Leith residents.
Few have been spared some level of humiliation. But Cobb's attacks on Cook rise to a level beyond name calling, racial slurs or ridicule. In one of his posts, Cobb speculates that Cook's personality may have had "something to do" with instigating the murder of Cook's then 17-year-old daughter.
On White Nations, a website for white supremacists, Cobb writes, "From what I've personally seen of his acne faced childish drama (and his wife's), I do wonder if his pugnacious, punkish behavior might have had something to do with instigating the killer beyond what might have happened with a more mature, stable man."
Cobb also walked up to Cook, holding a recorder, at Sunday's town council meeting and loudly said, "Was your daughter murdered?
Did you have anything to do with aggravating it?" Cook, 49, a big burly sized man who's heading up a crew for a well-known contractor in the area, said he sat on his hands and bit his tongue that night.
"I didn't say a word. I knew what he wants me to do, he wants me to beat him so he can sue me," Cook said in an interview Thursday.
"It's so evil for someone to go there. He doesn't have limits. He's desperate to make something happen because he's losing his battle to take over the town."
"ONE MORE YEAR LEFT" (Part 2)
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 29, 2017
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 29, 2017
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 29, 2017
Photo by Lauren Donovan - Bismarck Tribune
"NOTORIOUS CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC TERRORIST" CRAIG COBB'S 4 YEAR PROBATION ENDS ON APRIL 29TH OF NEXT YEAR!
Cobb will then be "FREE" to roam the streets of Leith or any other town in North Dakota or even the country all thanks to the former Grant County North Dakota States Attorney TODD SCHWARZ and the North Dakota Assistant Attorney General PAUL EMERSON and the soft peddling plea deal they gave him.
The stories below, written by the Bismarck Tribune reporter Lauren Donovan are a small sampling of the struggle the tiny town of Leith, North Dakota and its citizens endured during the "REIGN OF TERROR" the "NOTORIOUS CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC TERRORIST" Craig Cobb and his band of NAZIS thrust upon them in their efforts to take over the town.
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 29, 2017
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 29, 2017
A meeting took place in the Leith, North Dakota Community Center on October 27, 2013. Two of the Neo-Nazis Craig Cobb & Kynan Dutton were present before the meeting began to rant & rave about what only "THEY" knew!
This caused many of the people there to support the citizens of Leith to verbally disagree with the Nazis! There was some angry shouting & shoving & Harassment!
Just 3 days later on October 30, 2013 the now '"NOTORIOUS CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC TERRORIST" CRAIG COBB had a confrontation with the former Grant County Sheriff Steve Bay in the New Leipzig, North Dakota cafe.
He had driven the 20 miles from Leith, North Dakota to inject himself (presumably) into the Joel Heitkamp show of KFGO which was broadcast live from the New Leipzig cafe (the Leipziger) to raise funds for the City of Leith's legal defense fund.
He found himself too late as the radio talk show host had packed up and left.
It was just by chance that this editor was able to film and follow the disappointed Cobb out the door and down the street to his car.
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 29, 2017
Leith City Council OKs Building Moratorium
Courtesy Of The Bismarck Tribune - By Lauren Donovan (Written - October 27, 2013)
The city of Leith approved a building moratorium and took other steps Sunday night to prevent white supremacists from living on property without sewer and water and squatting in tents and trailers.
Law enforcement was only required to remove Craig Cobb from sitting at the city council's meeting table and to intervene when Cobb told members of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe they were off the reservation and should go back home.
Cobb, a hate crimes fugitive from Canada with extremist neo-Nazi views, purchased a home and 12 other lots and is encouraging others to join him in taking over the town.
The new ordinances will require Cobb to put water and sewer into his house, where three other white male supremacists and two young children are also living with space heaters and no working furnace.
The city approved the second reading of a moratorium that prevents any new building until planning and zoning is put into place. It held first readings on the adoption of a uniform building code, on a requirement that residences must have water and sewer and an ordinance that prevents tents and campers from being on a lot for more than 10 consecutive days.
Under the ordinance, anyone without water and sewer will have 30 days to come into compliance, or face fines or possible condemnation.
Cobb said the town got by for decades without the ordinances. "Why now? Is it a wonderful coincidence that the moment I show up these are necessary? It's patently unfair," Cobb said.
He said he may rename Leith the "Village of the Damned" when he takes it over. He said residents are "evil and nasty."
The meeting was attended by about 50 people, mostly Leith residents and supporters.
"ONE MORE YEAR LEFT" (Part 1)
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 23, 2017
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 23, 2017
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 23, 2017
North Dakota cannot let the damage this man and his band of NAZI thugs start up again so read this story below so one will forget.
The "NOTORIOUS CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC TERRORIST" Craig Cobb's four (4) year probation will come to and end on April 29, 2018 (next year).
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 23, 2017
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 23, 2017
He will then be free of his electronic ankle bracelet so he will no longer be required to remain in North Dakota.
He has tried unsuccessfully to buy and keep property in Leith, Regan, Antler, Landa and Nome, North Dakota. He was arrested, tried and put in jail for terrorizing citizens of Leith which, included this editor.
He was released after the prosecutor Todd Schwarz let him off on a plea agreement that 'PISSED OFF' the Mayor of Leith Ryan Schock, Leith City Councilman Lee Cook (a victim) and yes, me (Gregory Bruce) this website's editor and victim.
Schwarz eventually quit Grant County and has now moved on to McKenzie County causing more problems up there by helping to prosecute the County Sheriff Gary Schwartzenberger.
BY Gregory Bruce -Editor - Grant County ND News - April 23, 2017
He then got permission to go to Missouri to visit his ailing elderly mother whom he hadn't had a relationship with for more than 40 years.
On his way back to where he lives (to this day) in Sherwood, North Dakota he stopped in Smith Center, Kansas and tried to purchase property in nearby Inavale, Kansas but was once again unsuccessful. The woman he tried to buy the property from gave him his money back when she found out who he was.
Cobb and neighbor fixing ramshackle house roof in Sherwood, North Dakota
His next move was to travel north to Red Cloud, Nebraska where he did purchase some property in a sheriff's sale but a judge ruled against him as the town's citizens banded together and paid the back taxes for the owner.
This town eventually found itself in the news all over the world in video and in print much like the City of Leith and Grant County, North Dakota did.
Eventually the town had enough and demolished the building he was trying to buy. There is a video that tells the story of how yet another North Dakota town dealt with the "NOTORIOUS CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC TERRORIST" Craig Cobb and his incessant desire to inflict hate and racism upon its people.
Cobb's next move was to attempt a purchase of another property in neighboring Landa, North Dakota. He was turned down by the bank and the owner.
FIRE THAT DESTROYED NOME CHURCH OWNED BY COBB...
...INTENTIONALLY SET, INVESTIGATOR RULES (DOES HE REALLY OWN IT?)
BY HELMUT SCHMIDT -INFORUM NEWS SERVICE - APRIL 6, 2017 - 6:32PM
BISMARCK - The March 22 fire that destroyed an unoccupied former church in Nome was intentionally set, Deputy State Fire Marshal Ken Sisk said in a report released Thursday, April 6.
"It is my opinion an unknown person or persons intentionally set fire to the area near the southeast walk-in door of this building using an undetermined open flame device; therefore I am labeling the cause of this fire to be incendiary," Sisk said in the report
Sisk noted that the wood-framed church had no electrical service, no heating and was secured, with new locks installed just one day before the fire. The 108-year-old Zion Lutheran Church building at 295 3rd Ave. N. was reported purchased by white supremacist Craig Cobb before the fire. Sisk's report lists Kevin Richman and Alexis (Wolf) Haseleu as the owners..
Cobb, of Sherwood, N.D., said Thursday that he wasn't informed about Sisk's report. "Why didn't they use the word arson? Is that too incendiary?" Cobb asked. Still, he was glad the fire was ruled deliberate. "I've very pleased, because I was afraid they were going to say indeterminate" for a cause of the blaze, he said.
Cobb said he paid Richman $8,000 for the property. "I'm recorded. Go check the county," he said. "I own it." However, he was unable to get insurance for the church. "I had a great loss. It's very maddening to me," Cobb said. "It was a very bold-faced sociopath that walked in broad daylight and did it." Sisk was not available for comment, said a spokeswoman for the North Dakota Attorney General's Office.
"We do not discuss these reports," Liz Brocker said. "The report stands by itself." Sisk said the Barnes County Sheriff's Office had requested help determining the origin and cause of the fire. He said he arrived in Nome on March 23 and was assisted by the sheriff's office, the Nome Volunteer Fire Department and Derek Hill, a special agent with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Everything combustible had been consumed by the fire, and the basement of the structure was filled with ashes and non-combustible material, Sisk said in the report. Barnes County Sheriff Randy McClaflin said Thursday that "we're looking at every aspect" in the investigation. "We're talking to everyone around there," McClaflin said. Cobb said he's pleaded to have the FBI investigate the blaze.
"These are sociopaths working in concert, in my opinion. I don't believe that no one in that community doesn't know who did that," Cobb said. "It's horrific, this kind of hate. I don't go to people's homes and burn them down." Cobb, who had been convicted of terrorizing and menacing residents in Leith, still has a year of probation on those charges, he said. He said he still likes the state.
"I'm going to stay up here. I like North Dakota in general. They do tend to leave people alone," Cobb said. Cobb, 65, previously tried to establish white supremacist enclaves in two other North Dakota towns, including Leith, southwest of Bismarck. Cobb is involved in the Creativity Movement, a non-theistic religion that believes in the superiority of white people.
He has said that unless the arsonist turns him or herself in, he will continue his efforts to remain in Nome. "If they want to keep pushing, I just may very well retain the lot and build a building there and still make The President Donald J. Trump Creativity Church of Rome, not Nome," Cobb said in a previous interview.
WHITE SUPREMACIST SAYS FIRE WAS ARSON AT HIS NEW HOME
By Kim Hyatt on Mar 22, 2017 at 11:09 p.m.
NOME, N.D. -- A 108-year-old church recently bought by an unwelcomed white supremacist burned to the ground Wednesday, March 22, in this small rural town.
White supremacist Craig Cobb was listed on a recent deed as an owner of the church at 295 3rd Ave. in Nome, which is about 70 miles southwest of Fargo. Nome residents said earlier this week it didn’t appear as if Cobb had moved in yet.
Cobb has previously tried to establish white supremacist enclaves in two other North Dakota towns, including Leith, southwest of Bismarck.
Cobb told WDAY anchor Kerstin Kealy the fire was “100 percent arson” and is offering a $2,000 reward for any information related to the incident. Both gas and electric utilities were off, so he claims the fire was not accidental. He said he planned on delivering furniture to the church earlier that day but never made the trip. He considers the fire a direct threat on his life.
He said he looked about 3 p.m. out of his kitchen window, which has a direct view of the church, and saw that it was on fire. Because of strong south winds, it didn’t take long for the fire to engulf the structure.
“It’s kind of sad that it goes, because it’s kind of a landmark in this town,” Jankowski said, adding that the church was built in 1908, the same year as his house.
He said there were some rumors circulating around town about some people wanting to burn down the church so they wouldn’t have to deal with Cobb, “but maybe it was just an offhand comment.”
“First of all, it’s a church, so it’s almost sacrilegious” for this to happen, Jankowski said.
He said no one was thrilled about the idea of Cobb moving to Nome “after that deal in Leith.”
“Everyone has some form of prejudice,” Jankowski said, “but this guy is way off the edge and he fell off.
The fire was reported at about 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the same day a story on the church and its new owner was featured on The Forum's front page.
Randy Langland, a firefighter with the Nome Volunteer Fire Department who was working in Lisbon, said he arrived at the scene about 4:25 p.m. and by that time the fire had pretty much destroyed the church.
“It had been going for quite a while,” Langland said.
He said officials have no idea how the fire started. The state fire marshal is expected to be in Nome on Thursday, March 23, to investigate.
All that remains of the structure are the foundation and chimney. Caution tape has been put around the smoldering ashes because of fears about the unstable chimney.
Jankowski said earlier this week that Alexis Wolf and then-boyfriend Kevin Richman bought the church in 2013, intending to remodel it into a home. According to Barnes County Recorder Jody Pfaff, a deed on file dated Feb. 21 that transferred ownership to Paul Cobb, also known as Craig Cobb, also lists Wolf as an owner.
Richman, who sold his portion of the deed to Cobb, said Wednesday he was surprised when he heard that fire had destroyed the church. “It was still a good structure,” said the rural Tower City resident.
When reached by phone Wednesday, Wolf declined to comment about the fire.
Cobb told WDAY he was considering several options about what to do with the church, including living there, renting rooms or opening a church called "the President Donald J. Trump Church of Rome," not Nome.
The Barnes County Sheriff’s Department and Fingal Fire Department also responded to the fire.
EDITOR COMMENT
"CRAIG COBB CARTOON SPECIAL"
This editor just spoke with the the mayor of Leith Ryan Schock and he says "CRAIG COBB'S DREAMS" have gone up in smoke once again in yet another town
Since COBB no longer has any connection to the internet pray tell how will he terrorize people?
CONVICTED TERRORIST CRAIG COBB'S TWITTER, WEBSITES SUSPENDED
EDITOR COMMENT
Finally Twitter, Facebook and other companies are waking up somewhat to the devastating and threatening chatter by these radical terrorists. (that's what they are)
If the former Grant County States Attorney TODD SCHWARZ and the Assistant Attorney General PAUL EMERSON had prosecuted CRAIG COBB and mandated that he have no use of computers nor the internet during his four (4) years of supervised probation he would not be waging an internet war against this editor and his family, the Mayor of Leith Ryan Schock and his family, the Leith City Councilman Lee Cook and his family and Bobby and Sheryl Harper.
COBB and his NAZI cronies threatened to kill all of us with bullets to the brain many times over and accused one of us for having relations with a dead wife posted on NAZI websites and another for taking part in the murder of a child filmed by this editor and in the movie "WELCOME TO LEITH"..
Just three (3) weeks after his release from jail on April 29, 2014 he began an attack on a NAZI website by posting photographs and writing filthy statements about this editor's family. This editor contacted the Deputy Sheriff of Grant County (now the Sheriff) John Foss and provided him with files of what COBB had posted on the NAZI website.
The FBI seized his computer and files but did the North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem take further action and place further restrictions on his probation - HELL NO! It's no wonder Stenehjem lost the primary election by a wide margin.
COBB will have completed his probation on April 29th of next year (2018) and will actually be able to visit or come back to Leith and start his rampage all over again. One thing is for sure the citizens of Leith, this editor and Grant County people in general will never let that happen. This state and this country have had enough of these animals harassing North Dakota citizens, disrupting their peaceful lives, costing them money and letting the politicians run their lives.
Once again - most people don't realize this but the same attorneys; the former Grant County States Attorney TODD SCHWARZ and the Assistant Attorney General PAUL EMERSON that let CRAIG COBB off with just a slap of the hand are the same ones that tried to put the long time Mayor of Leith Ryan Schock on trial for "FAILURE TO CONTROL A LEGAL FIRE DEMOLITION IN THE CITY OF LEITH". After seventeen (17) months of delays and reschedules of trial dates the charge was dismissed with prejudice.
Now the same former Grant County States Attorney TODD SCHWARZ (now the McKenzie County Assistant States Attorney) and the Assistant Attorney General PAUL EMERSON have initiated a malicious selective prosecution of the suspended (by former Governor Jack Dalrymple) McKenzie County Sheriff Gary Schwartzenberger for a charge that is frivolous to say the least.
When these attorneys that keep sucking the life out of taxpayer money by their constant plea deals letting off terrorists like COBB and DUTTON and the pipeline protesters are finally run out of office either by elective processes or just plain getting fired the better off North Dakota will be.
In the image above are the two (2) attorneys (PAUL EMERSON on the left and TODD SCHWARZ on the right) during the courtroom release of the notorious NAZI CRAIG COBB that terrorized the citizens of the City of Leith, Grant County and the state of North Dakota. They then went after the editor of this news website by dropping the charge against COBB that involved him. Then the Mayor of Leith Ryan Schock was next. Now they continue their vendetta of malicious selective prosecution of the Sheriff of McKenzie County.
For those who don't really know what went on with these two and the NAZI CRAIG COBB you should see the movie "WELCOME TO LEITH". It will literally scare the HELL out of most people.
A LOOK BACK THREE YEARS LATER...
...AFTER THE "CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC NAZI/WHITE SUPREMACIST TERRORIST" CRAIG COBB AND HIS ATTEMPT TO TAKE OVER SIX (6) TOWNS IN NORTH DAKOTA, KANSAS AND NEBRASKA
EDITOR COMMENT: COBB WAS RELEASED FROM JAIL ON 4 YEARS SUPERVISED PROBATION ON APRIL 29, 2014 BY THE NOW HUMILIATED FORMER GRANT COUNTY STATES ATTORNEY "TODD SCHWARZ".
HIS PROBATION WILL END ON APRIL 29TH OF NEXT YEAR (2018) WHEN HE WILL BE FREE TO LEAVE NORTH DAKOTA BUT UNDER FEDERAL LAW WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO OWN ANY FIREARM FOR LIFE.
THE STATE OF NORTH DAKOTA SHOULD HAVE TAKEN A LESSON LEARNED FROM THE PAGES OF THE CITY OF LEITH AND ITS STRUGGLE AND EVENTUAL VICTORY OVER RUNNING THE NAZIS OUT OF GRANT COUNTY WITH THE STANDING ROCK TRIBAL NATION AND THE DAPL RIOTERS AND IT WOULD NOT HAVE COST NORTH DAKOTA TAXPAYERS ALMOST $40 MILLION.
COBB IS FOREWARNED NOT TO RETURN TO THE CITY OF LEITH NOR GRANT COUNTY AS HE WILL CERTAINLY REGRET DOING SO.
The four videos below were filmed by an RT (Russia Today Television) videographer and reported by Maria Finoshina (A War Correspondent of Russia Today Television).
Maria contacted this editor back in the fall of 2015 through the now closed Leith website and was able to track him down in Sherwood, North Dakota. Cobb was not pleased when she showed up at his house and after an exchange of a few comments Cobb invited Maria to come inside his house where his three dogs were 'yapping'.
However, she refused and the interview was on at the outside of his dilapidated fence and house.
Maria then travelled on to Nebraska and Kansas where she found and interviewed several residents who all pooled together their resources and paid the back taxes on several properties that Cobb attempted to buy for his NAZIS to come and presumably take over their town.
WHITE SUPREMACIST COBB IS CO-OWNER OF FORMER NOME, ND CHURCH
Tuesday, February 21, 2017 4:59 p.m. CST by Jim Monk
VALLEY CITY, ND (KFGO) - Craig Cobb, the white supremacist convicted of terrorizing residents in Leith, ND, is now the co-owner of an abandoned church in Barnes County.
The Barnes County Recorder's office says a deed was filed Tuesday that lists Cobb as one of two people who own the former Nome Zion Evangelical Free Church. The Barnes County Treasurer's office also confirms that Cobb submitted a check for his share of the property tax bill.
City leaders in Nome have expressed concern about what Cobb plans to do with the church. In 2013, Cobb tried to establish an all-white community in Leith, ND.
Cobb is now living in Sherwood, ND. He's serving four years of probation for terrorizing and menacing Leith residents.
CLICK HERE for the NAZIS taking interest in the "CONVICTED HOME GROWN DOMESTIC TERRORIST" CRAIG COBB.
NOME, ND RESIDENTS FEAR WHITE SUPREMACIST MOVING TO TOWN
By Catherine Ross on February 5, 2017
NOME, N.D.—A small North Dakota town is at odds with its newest neighbor.
This week, notorious white supremacist Craig Cobb started moving into an old church in Nome.
Craig Cobb has twice tried to turn small North Dakota towns into all-white enclaves.
At a city council meeting Sunday night, some desperate Nome residents were searching for ways to keep that from happening in their town.
Several people say they've already seen Cobb moving furniture into the old Zion Lutheran Church.
At Sunday's meeting, the mayor says technically the sale is not final.
Only 1 of the church's 2 current owners have agreed to sell.
But that's not stopping neighbors from worrying about Cobb's history of neo-Nazi style terrorizing.
The council says he is legally entitled to live where he wants.
Some residents say they feel helpless.
Nome Mayor Bruce Storhoff says, "I don't know if there's anything we can do until he does something unlawful or illegal to our ordinances or to the county."
Nome resident Sarah Rangeloff says, "I'm afraid if he comes out here and lives out here he will be bringing probably his goons with him or his followers and he'll be interrupting everyone's lives, including the kids that live out here."
Cobb is on probation until 2018 and prohibited from owning a firearm.
The Barnes County Sheriff says if Cobb does move in deputies will likely increase patrols through town.
WHITE SUPREMACIST CRAIG COBB MOVING INTO NOME CHURCH
By Catherine Ross on February 4, 2017 at 7:05 p.m.
NOME, N.D. -- The man who twice tried to turn small North Dakota towns into all-white enclaves is putting down stakes in Barnes County. This week, Craig Cobb started moving into Nome.
Earlier this year, Cobb said he was filing a discrimination suit claiming a Bottineau bank officer wouldn't let him buy a home in Landa.
At that time, he said he wanted to settle down with his girlfriend and not take over the community.
But neighbors in Nome worry that could change.
Barely 5 dozen people live in sleepy Nome.
Linda Hendrickson says, "We've lived here all of our lives. It's been a peaceful town and we hope it stays that way."
Some worry their new neighbor could change that.
Hendrickson says, "Our hands are tied. I mean he can live where he wants I guess."
Linda Hendrickson lives just a stone's throw from Craig Cobb's new home.
This week, the white supremacist moved into the former Zion Lutheran Church.
It's a place the Hendricksons attended for decades before it closed in 2012.
They can see the building through their dining room window and hold onto some of its precious keepsakes.
After it was a worship space, the church changed hands several times before Cobb bought it.
Cobb is on probation until 2018 after being convicted in 2013 of neo-Nazi style terrorizing in Leith, North Dakota.
He tried to turn the town into an all-white enclave.
Since then, several other North Dakota towns and places in Kansas and Nebraska prevented him from buying property.
And this purchase isn't coming without push-back.
Hendrickson says, "I think everybody deserves a chance, but he's been given so many chances in so many different towns. Is it going to be the same situation here as it has been in the other towns?"
Nome city officials and the Barnes County Sheriff plan to hold a meeting Sunday night to address concerns.
The Sheriff says as long as Cobb doesn't do anything illegal, he's entitled to live where he wants.
EDITORIAL NOTE:
After being one of COBB's victims and filming, photographing and reporting on this "NAZI IDIOT" for the past three and one half years one would think he would stop his lunacy but NO...he continues to harass people.
If the good people of Nome, North Dakota don't realize it he will buy the church property, move in with his so-called girlfriend some 30 years younger and turn it into his "CHURCH OF CREATIVITY" and invite more of his NAZI kind into their town eventually turning it into a NAZI ENCLAVE which, has always been his eventual goal!
The time is now for the town of Nome to get its ordinances updated, find out who is selling the property and stop them from selling it to this LUNATIC!
I have spoken with the Mayor of Nome and have provided him with a copy of the City of Leith's ordinances which prevented COBB from financially staying in Leith. I also provided the Mayor with a copy of COBB's probation order.
I speak from personal experience as to how dangerous this man and his NAZI kind can be.
TOWN SEES NO WAY TO BLOCK COBB FROM BUYING OLD CHURCH
By Archie Ingersoll - Forum News Service
NOME — This 62-person hamlet in Barnes County is facing a question other sleepy North Dakota towns have already grappled with: What should be done when white supremacist Craig Cobb is trying to move in?
Cobb, aka Paul Craig Cobb, has already tried to turn the towns of Leith and Antler into enclaves of white supremacists. Now, it’s believed he started last week to move into the former Zion Lutheran Church in Nome, about 70 miles southwest of Fargo.
At a meeting of the Nome City Council on Sunday, Feb. 5, Mayor Bruce Storhoff said he’s heard Cobb intends to buy the old church, which is currently zoned as a residence and not a gathering place. However, the sale is not yet complete, and the county recorder’s office has not registered it, Storhoff said.
“As a governing body, we really don’t have a leg to stand on just to not let him in if that sale goes through,” the mayor said, adding that Cobb would have to do something illegal before officials could intervene.
The regularly-scheduled City Council meeting, which coincided with the Super Bowl, was attended by about six members of the public. One of them was Nome resident Sarah Rangeloff, who had a question for Barnes County Sheriff Randy McClaflin.
“Say everything goes through, and he starts trouble,” she said of Cobb. “Are we going to have the extra patrol out here and are you guys ready to deal with that?”
The sheriff assured Rangeloff, the mother of a 12-year-old girl, that his department is ready, but noted that more patrols may require the help of other law enforcement agencies.
“It would kill me if my daughter felt unsafe in her own home because of that idiot,” Rangeloff said, again referring to Cobb.
McClaflin said one of his deputies saw Cobb moving belongings from the trunk of his vehicle into the church Friday evening. The sheriff said he consulted with the local state’s attorney who said that it’s not a matter law enforcement can get involved in at this point.
“He does have a right to own property. He does have a right to declare, you know, his beliefs the same as we do,” said City Auditor Alice Capman. “It’s not something that we need to agree with him on.”
Shortly before Sunday’s meeting, no one answered when The Forum knocked on the church doors. The dilapidated church, with peeling white paint, appeared unoccupied. Cobb, who did not attend the meeting, does not have a listed phone number.
Asked who sold the property to Cobb, city officials referred the question to the county recorder’s office, which was closed over the weekend.
Cobb is a member of the Creativity Movement, a nontheistic religion that believes in the superiority of white people. Starting in 2011, he began buying up property in Leith, N.D., southwest of Bismarck, with the intent of turning the town into a white supremacist enclave.
In 2013, Leith residents learned of Cobb’s plan, and town officials started discussing new building ordinances and even dissolving the town government. Later that year, Cobb was jailed on suspicion of terrorizing after conducting an armed patrol of his property in Leith.
Cobb pleaded guilty in 2014 to a felony terrorizing charge and five misdemeanor menacing charges. A judge gave him credit for time served and put him on supervised probation until 2018.
In 2015, he tried to buy land for an enclave in Antler, N.D., north of Minot and just south of the Canadian border. Cobb has lately resided in Sherwood, N.D., northwest of Minot. He has said the Sherwood house was just a place where he and his girlfriend wanted to live, not start an enclave.
He said the same about a home he tried to buy last month in Landa, N.D., northeast of Minot. In that case, he threatened to file a discrimination suit after a bank officer wouldn't let him purchase the home.
CHARGES DISMISSED AGAINST LEITH MAYOR
Courtesy Of The Bismarck Tribune - By Lauren Donovan (Written - January 6, 2016)
Just days before Leith Mayor Ryan Schock was to go on trial for burning down a condemned property in the Grant County village, the attorney general's office filed a motion to dismiss the misdemeanor charge, bringing the nearly two-year-long issue to an end with the court judge's signature.
Assistant Attorney General Paul Emerson filed the motion in South Central District Court on Wednesday citing prosecutorial discretion and lack of sufficient evidence to convict Schock of failing to control and report the fire.
Schock, who battled to save Leith from an attempted takeover by white supremacist Craig Cobb and his cohorts, burned a dilapidated structure after Cobb deeded it back to the city as part of his stay-out-of-jail deal.
The charge was filed nearly a year after the May 2014 fire and had been scheduled for trial on four occasions, but always pushed forward for a continuance. The charge was based on a complaint from Michael Bencz, who moved to town during the Cobb disruption and claimed the fire threatened his property.
Schock said he was relieved the matter was finally over.
"It's a pretty good day today. I hope this is the end of it, and we can close the book on everything," Schock said.
Schock's troubles started in August 2013, when Cobb started buying empty lots and abandoned houses and offering them to other white supremacists with the aim of taking over the town council and flying Nazi flags at city hall. That ended when Cobb was arrested for terrorizing residents while on an armed patrol of Leith. He's serving four years probation on a plea deal and lives in Sherwood, near Canada. Cohort Kynan Dutton, now of Underwood, comes off probation at the end of the month for the same incident.
LEITH MAYOR RYAN SCHOCK HEADED FOR TRIAL
Written By Gregory Bruce - Editor - Grant County ND News - January 5, 2016
LEITH, ND - Mayor Ryan Schock of Leith, ND, who after enduring the ordeal of liberating the takeover of the town by nazi/white supremacists Craig Cobb, Kynan Dutton and Deborah Henderson is now being prosecuted by Paul Emerson of the North Dakota Attorney General's office for failure to control or report a dangerous fire in the City of Leith.
The court date for the misdemeanor 'A' 6 person jury trial is now set for Tuesday and Wednesday, January 12th and 13th at 9 AM (MST) in the Carson, ND Courthouse. If convicted Mayor Schock could receive up to 1 year imprisonment and/or a $3,000 fine or both.
Leith City Councilman Lee Cook says, "This is pure retribution by former Grant County States Attorney Todd Schwarz and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem's representative Paul Emerson."
In an interview with Grant County ND News Dot Com editor Gregory Bruce Mr. Cook went on to say "the state won't prosecute people like Craig Cobb for terrorizing citizens of Leith with guns but will go after a law abiding citizen like Mr. Schock who has no criminal record. He is a pillar of the community serving as Mayor of Leith for several terms, working hard ranching and raising a family. He is a hero in the community with the backbone to stand up against evil and injustice, Mr. Cook added." Mr. Cook continued to say "it does nothing more than add to the political agenda of destroying the individuals who took Todd Schwarz before the North Dakota Supreme Court's Disciplinary Board for conduct unbecoming of an attorney in the summer of 2014. Thousands of taxpayer dollars are now going to be spent on a jury trial that will end up in the North Dakota Supreme Court if necessary."
Todd Schwarz has since resigned as Grant County States Attorney and has moved on to become McKenzie County Assistant States Attorney. According to the Grant County Auditor Lynn Mutschelknaus, Schwarz's replacement is the current Golden Valley States Attorney Elizabeth A. Ebert, who is also a member of the Mackoff Kellogg law firm in Dickinson, ND. She will begin her duties this month.
Mayor Schock and volunteers have continued to clean up the town by demolishing several falling down structures that had been condemned years ago by Custer Health making Leith a safe place for people to raise a family.
The City of Leith waged a legal battle against the nazi/white supremacist Craig Cobb and his accomplices Kynan Dutton and Deborah Henderson and their agenda to take over the City of Leith to the point it became an international saga. Within a few weeks after being online there were millions of hits on its website and Facebook pages. Ryan Schock and Lee Cook of Leith, Gregory Bruce of New Leipzig and Lisa Auck of Underwood went to court on numerous occasions fighting restraining orders and sitting through all the hearings of Craig Cobb and Kynan Dutton.
At one point in McLean County's courtroom in Washburn, Deborah Henderson filed a 2nd restraining order against Leith's Media Relations Representative Gregory Bruce and Lauren Donovan, a reporter of the Bismarck Tribune newspaper for stalking. Both were summarily dismissed by the presiding judge. This was immediately done by Henderson following the judge's decision to dismiss her initial restraining order against Lisa Auck.
Michael Bencz and Deby Nelson moved to Leith from Wisconsin after they put a $2,500 down payment on one of Cobb’s dilapidated houses north of the old town church. They claim they made two payments to Cobb after their down payment but offered no proof of it. According to Craig Cobb, he received no payments from them after he was arrested with Kynan Dutton on November 16, 2013 and charged with 7 counts of terrorizing residents of Leith and 1 resident from New Leipzig.
Eventually Todd Schwarz, then Assistant States Attorney for Grant County, ND let Cobb off with a plea agreement for time served with only 1 felony on his record and 4 years of supervised probation requiring him to remain in North Dakota. Schwarz was assisted by Attorney Paul Emerson of the North Dakota Attorney General's office throughout all of Craig Cobb's hearings and is now prosecuting Mayor Ryan Schock.
Mayor Schock, along with other Leith officials eventually legally destroyed the structure by fire on May 25, 2014 after Bencz and Nelson interfered with demolition crews on 2 previous occasions. The remaining details of the issue are not being discussed on the advice of legal counsel.
The documents giving notice to Cobb by Custer Health to clean up the property in question along with photos as well as the eventual notice to the City of Leith to carry out the abatement of the property after Cobb refused to clean up the property are on the Grant County, North Dakota News Dot Com website at: www.grantcountyndnews.com/downloads.htm.
Additionally the quit claim deed Cobb filled out turning the properties over to the City of Leith in order for him to be released from jail is also on this website.
Leith and Grant County citizens along with Cobb, Dutton and other nazi/white supremacists were interviewed and filmed by the media company 'Hot Snakes Media' from Brooklyn, NY. They produced a 1 hour documentary for the National Geographic television channel however, to this day National Geographic executives have refused to comment on why they cancelled the 6 part series entitled 'American Fringe'.
No Weather Productions of Brooklyn, NY directors Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher K. Walker also filmed Leith and Grant County citizens for over 8 months as well as Cobb and other people from all over the country including other nazi/white supremacists.
Their 85-minute documentary entitled 'Welcome To Leith' premiered at Robert Redford's Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah last summer. Over 2,000 viewers saw the film in 6 different theatres in the famous tourist town. Mayor Schock and his family were among the attendees. After each showing there were Q&A sessions where people from all over the world asked Mayor Schock how the Leith debacle affected his family and the people of Leith. The response was overwhelmingly supportive of the town and its residents. Craig Cobb showed up on the big screen via a Skype video teleconference session during 1 of the Q&A sessions. Cobb's short appearance prompted the audience to become enraged.
The movie 'Welcome To Leith', which chronicled Leith's struggle to liberate itself of the nazi/white supremacist takeover of their town has become an international hit viewing in theatres in over 20 countries and almost every state in the US. It is currently available for sale or rent on iTunes as a download. DVD's will be available next month on such websites as Amazon and iTunes.
Mayor Schock's only comment advised by attorney Steven Balaban of Bismarck, ND is that "justice will prevail when I go to trial and am acquitted of the charge", Schock said.
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