Three Texas men who are reportedly supporters of white nationalist Richard Spencer were arrested Thursday in connection with a shooting near the University of Florida following a speech by Mr. Spencer on campus.
William Henry Fears, 30, Colton Gene Fears, 28, and Tyler Tenbrink, 29, have been charged with attempted homicide, The Gainesville Sun reported. Mr. Tenbrink faces an additional charge of being a felon in possession of a weapon.
About 5:50 p.m., the men pulled up in a silver Jeep next to a small group of people who were sitting at a bus stop on Archer Road, at the southwest corner of the UF campus, Alachua County Sheriff’s Office deputies said. One of the men reportedly cheered Adolf Hitler and started chanting.
An individual in the larger group hit the vehicle’s rear window with a baton, and the Jeep sped away before coming to a stop, according to the report. Mr. Tenbrink then stepped out of the vehicle with a gun and fired one shot at the individual, missing and hitting a building.
Deputies later found the men driving north on Interstate 75 and arrested them.
Wesley Durrance, of Gainesville, told The Sun that his friends were targeted because they were carrying anti-Nazi signs protesting Mr. Spencer’s speech.
SEE ALSO: Five arrests linked to Richard Spencer appearance at University of Florida
In a video shot earlier Thursday by The Sun, William Fears said he sympathized with reported white supremacist James Alex Fields Jr., who was charged with driving a car through counterprotesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing a 32-year-old woman and injuring 19 others.
“It’s always been socially acceptable to punch a Nazi, to attack people if they have right-wing political leanings,” Mr. Fears said. “Us coming in and saying we’re taking over your town, we’re starting to push back, we’re starting to want to intimidate back. We want to show our teeth a little bit because, you know, we’re not to be taken lightly. We don’t want violence; we don’t want harm. But at the end of the day, we’re not opposed to defending ourselves.”
Mr. Tenbrink, a convicted felon, told the newspaper he had driven to Gainesville from Houston to see Mr. Spencer speak.
“This is a mess. I’m disappointed in the course of things,” Mr. Tenbrink said. “It appears that the only answer left is violence, and nobody wants that.”
Police said two of the three have connections to “extremist groups.”
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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