Virginia man accused of driving into protesters an admitted KKK leader, officials say

A Richmond, Va.-area man who allegedly drove his truck into a crowd of protesters Sunday has admitted to being a leader of the Ku Klux Klan, prosecutors said Monday.

Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor said Harry Rogers, 36, who has been charged with attempted malicious wounding, felony vandalism and assault and battery, is “an admitted leader of the Ku Klux Klan and a propagandist for Confederate ideology,” according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Taylor said the Hanover County man was driving recklessly on Lakeside Avenue and, upon approaching a group of protesters, revved his engine and drove through the crowd, the newspaper reported, adding that one person was evaluated for injuries.

Lt. A.M. Robertson of the Henrico Police confirmed the incident, saying in a news release on Sunday that “several witnesses reported that a vehicle revved their engine and drove through the protesters occupying the roadway.”

“While I am grateful that the victim’s injuries do not appear to be serious, an attack on peaceful protesters is heinous and despicable and we will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law,” Taylor said, adding that her office is  investigating whether the incident merits hate crime charges.

As protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody sweep the nation, Richmond, once the capital of the Confederacy, has been the site of several incidents that captured national attention during the protests, including the toppling of the statue of Confederate Gen. Williams Carter Wickham in Monroe Park.

Last week, Gov. Ralph Northam (D) announced the statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee, which has been a frequent target of graffiti during the protests, would be removed from its pedestal on Monument Avenue.

There have also been previous incidents of motorists driving or attempting to drive through protesters, including an incident in Seattle on Sunday in which the suspect also allegedly shot a protester.

A white supremacist was convicted of murdering counterdemonstrator Heather Heyer after he drove into a crowd at the Charlottesville, Va., “Unite the Right” rally in 2017.