【By Liu Bai, Observers Network】

Recruiting homeless people to form private armies, buying weapons, sailing on a sailboat to invade an island in Haiti, killing all local men, and turning women and children into sex slaves to satisfy rape fantasies...

This absurd anti-human colonial fantasy is something even screenwriters would not dare to write. However, two men from Texas, USA, were seriously planning it.

They not only planned for a year but also learned the local language, gun and ammunition knowledge, and planned to purchase military weapons. One of them even joined the U.S. Air Force to "steal skills."

Last week, the two were charged with "conspiring to murder, injure or kidnap others abroad," and could face life imprisonment.

According to a report by The New York Times on November 22, 21-year-old Gavin Rivers Weisberg and 20-year-old Tanner Christopher Thomas were indicted on October 20 at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

The indictment accused them of deliberately recruiting homeless people to carry out a military coup on an island in Haiti, planning to kill all men on the island and turn women and children into sex slaves.

Thomas (left) and Weisberg (right)

Location of Gonave Island

The indictment stated that Weisberg and Thomas began planning the coup in August 2024, intending to sail to Gonave Island, which belongs to Haiti (with about 87,000 residents), and seize control of the island by force.

Gonave Island is located in the Gulf of Gonaives in western Haiti, covering an area of about 700 square kilometers. As an important geographical node in the Caribbean, this island was involved in the 1800 U.S.-France naval battle. In modern times, it faces issues of illegal immigration.

To advance the coup plan, the two even started learning related skills, and their attitude was very serious.

According to the indictment, both were learning Haitian Creole.

Weisberg joined the North Texas Fire Academy in Rockwall, Texas, in August 2024, aiming to learn "command and control procedures," but he was expelled in February this year due to failing the assessment.

This did not stop his "learning" desire. Since they planned to sail to Gonave Island, Weisberg also wanted to learn some navigation skills in Thailand, but he couldn't enroll due to the cost.

Thomas was more determined; he even joined the U.S. Air Force.

Court documents show that Thomas sent messages to Weisberg saying that joining the military was to help advance the coup plan.

Thomas was initially stationed in Germany, then applied to be transferred to Maryland. The indictment states that the two planned to recruit homeless people around Washington D.C. to participate in the coup and pay them.

They also studied the knowledge of firearms and ammunition and planned to purchase military-standard weapons.

The two imagined that once the coup succeeded, after controlling the island, they would kill all the men and turn women and children into sex slaves, satisfying their own rape fantasies.

The indictment mentions co-conspirators but does not specify their identities or roles in the plan. It is currently unclear how federal officials discovered this coup plan.

Currently, Weisberg and Thomas are charged with conspiring to kill or kidnap people abroad, as well as making videos depicting child sexual abuse. One of their computers was found to contain child pornography.

Prosecutors said that if the charge of "conspiring to commit murder abroad" is proven, the two could face life imprisonment in federal prison; if the charge of "producing child pornography" is proven, each could receive 15 to 30 years in federal prison.

Both of their lawyers have stated plans to plead not guilty.

Thomas's lawyer John Helm said that he has not yet received the government's case evidence, but will provide a "strong" defense for Thomas. He believes that it will be very difficult for prosecutors to prove that these two people indeed had the intention to implement such a plan.

Weisberg's lawyer David Finn encouraged people to "remain cautious" and not make judgments yet. He said that people have always said this is the "most crazy thing" they have ever heard, and he also thinks it is indeed so.

This article is exclusive to Observers Network. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7576487162233848366/

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