Canada officially listed U.S. group “Three Percenters” on its “Criminal Code” terrorist list on June 25, adding it to the list of 77 organizations that include terrorist groups like Hezbollah, Taliban, Al Qaida, Boko Haram, and more.
“Three Percenters have been linked to bomb plots targeting United States federal government buildings and Muslim communities,” the Canadian government said about the group, pointing to the group’s involvement in the kidnapping of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, along with a Nov. 2015 incident in which a member was convicted of shooting five Black Lives Matter protesters in Minneapolis, Minn.
The June 25 addition also included Aryan Strikeforce, “Neo-Nazi” individual James Mason and the Congo-based branch of the Islamic State terror group. It follows a February 3 addition that added groups Proud Boys, The Base, Russian Imperial Movement, and Atomwaffen Division among nine other primarily Islamic State groups.
Bill Blair, Canada’s Minister for Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, indicated in the announcement that the decision was related to the events of January 6 at the U.S. Capitol.
“Recent events should remove any doubts about the serious threat posed by ideologically-motivated violent extremism,” Blair said. “Intolerance and hate have no place in our society and the Government of Canada will continue to do all we can to keep Canadians safe from all threats, including terrorism and violent extremism.”
Three Percenters, along with Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, have been identified among those who stormed the U.S. Capitol. Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice charged six men who self-identified as members of Three Percenters with conspiracy charges connected to the January 6 Capitol storming.
In July 2020, Congress described Three Percenters as “a hybrid between a private paramilitary militia network and a gun club,” and noted that because the group had no central leadership or structure, it was not a “significant force.”
Charging documents from January 2021 called the group a “radical militia group” and “domestic militia … loosely allied with the Oath Keepers, another anti-government militia.”
Canada said that adding entities to the terrorist list requires reasonable grounds to believe that an entity has knowingly carried out, attempted to carry out, participated in or facilitated a terrorist activity, or has knowingly acted on behalf of, at the direction of, or in association with such an entity.
As a result of their listing on the terrorist list, groups’ property is frozen and anyone knowingly dealing with the entity’s property could be charged with a crime. People affiliated with the group may also be denied entry into Canada.
