Feds say ‘Terrorgram’ white supremacists used Telegram to incite attacks

Two leaders of a white supremacist group that used Telegram to spread its ideology and coordinate activities were indicted on terrorism and hate crime charges, the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) announced on Monday.

The suspects, California resident Dallas Humber and Matthew Allison, from Idaho, were arrested last week in connection with their alleged roles in leading the transnational group Terrogram Collective.

Using the app, they allegedly encouraged hate crimes, and provided guidance and instructions for terrorist attacks on critical infrastructure as well as the assassinations of government officials, said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.

According to the indictment, Humber and Allison used Telegram to promote a white supremacist ideology, spreading the message that society is corrupt and cannot be saved, and that violence and terrorism are necessary to ignite a race war.

The leaders of the Terrorgram Collective shared videos and publications in their Telegram channels and group chats that encouraged attacks against “Black, immigrant, LGBT, and Jewish people.”

They also provided a hit list of “high-value targets” for assassination, including U.S. federal, state, and local officials, as well as leaders of private companies and non-governmental organizations.

International law enforcement also arrested other individuals allegedly inspired or guided by Humber and Allison, including an individual who shot three people outside an LGBTQ+ bar in Slovakia and a person suspected of stabbing five victims near a mosque in Turkey.

If convicted of all charges, Humber and Allison each face life in prison.

“Hate crimes fueled by bigotry and white supremacy, and amplified by the weaponization of digital messaging platforms, are on the rise and have no place in our society,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

The indictments come at a time when Telegram — and its lack of moderation — has been in the spotlight. Its founder, Pavel Durov, was arrested in Paris in August and is now being formally investigated for a range of offenses, including complicity in facilitating the distribution of child pornography and drug sales on the platform. 

“There is no doubt that various harmful forms of organized crime are facilitated to varying degrees by major social networks,” the Geneva-based nonprofit Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime said after Durov’s arrest.

“The crimes enabled by online platforms range widely, and the private sector is clearly not doing enough to keep its house in order.”