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Next Waco happening NOW in Shawano, WI; SIST Cult hitlist, City Buildings Lockdown, FBI called in
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Religious Group May Be Threatening People in Shawano
Story Created: Nov 14, 2008
Story Updated: Nov 14, 2008
Threats toward people in Shawano may have come from a religious group known as the Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology.
Police gave that information to Today's TMJ4, but the FBI has not confirmed it.
Police Chief Ed Whealon says people should not be overly concerned.
"If we thought there was a heightened threat as a result of this list, we would change the way we're doing things," said Whealon.
60 people were warned they were potential victims of the threat.
It's not clear what the threat actually is.
Shawano's City Hall remains on lockdown.
[link to www.620wtmj.com]
60 People named in Shawano Threat
Posted: Nov 12, 2008 07:26 PM CST
The FBI is investigating an implied threat made against 60 people in Shawano.
Details are very sketchy and the FBI isn't saying what the threat is or who made it.
NBC26 has learned the Mayor of Shawano, Lorna S. Marquardt, was on the list.
Leonard Peace, an FBI spokesman in Milwaukee, issued this statement:
"The FBI made a public announcement to 60 potential victims in Shawano on Thursday, Nov. 6. The FBI advised these individuals that they were potential victims of an implied threat that was discovered as part of an ongoing investigation. Pursuant to FBI policy, the potential victims were notified of the implied threat. This is an ongoing investigation and specific details of this case will not be released at this time."
We'll bring you the latest on NBC26 Live at 10:00.
[link to www.nbc26.com]
Religious Group Makes Accusations on Its Web Sites
Updated: Nov 13, 2008 04:00 PM CST
Religious Group Speaks Through Web Site
By Marcie Kobriger
While a group accused of making a threat against Shawano city and county officials has refused to speak to Action 2 News, some members of the Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology (SIST) have made their voices heard on the Internet.
We found a web site with an unassuming name making some major accusations against Shawano officials.
The site says its content is written by a retired couple named Meg and Gus who've resided in Shawano for decades.
The web site is registered to Kal Gronvall, a member of the religious group.
At www.shawano-wisconsin.com, you'll find general information about the small northern Wisconsin town.
You'll also find accusations of racial and religious discrimination by the city's police, the mayor, and other city leaders.
The site makes the claim "On the surface, Shawano, WI, is a nice, quiet Northwoods tourist destination. But underneath, Shawano is a racist town. For many years, Shawano officials have gotten away, literally, with murder...."
The site names Dr. R.C. Samanta Roy, president and founder of SIST, as the main victim of racism.
"This prejudice and discrimination has intensified since the founding of SIST more than a decade ago, especially since its purchase of various businesses in the Shawano area starting about five or six years ago."
The site claims city officials have made it difficult if not impossible for the self-proclaimed non-profit organization to make improvements to its numerous properties, hindering its ability to raise funds.
SIST and Kal Gronvall are listed as co-defendants in a current civil lawsuit filed by Shawano Mayor Lorna Marquardt.
[link to www.wbay.com]
SIST Official Responds to Accusations
Updated: Nov 13, 2008 10:17 PM CST
SIST Official Denies Group Made Any Threats
By Emily Matesic
The group accused of creating a list of potential targets of violence in Shawano County is speaking out for the first time.
"The city officials set all this up. SIST has nothing to do with any of this," says Naomi Isaacson, CEO of the R.C. Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology, otherwise known as SIST.
Shawano area officials tell Action 2 News the religious group just outside of Shawano is the focus of a federal investigation.
The FBI says 60 people in the Shawano area are on a list for what it calls "implied threats." We're told it includes Shawano's mayor, police chief, and city council members; Shawano County's sheriff and district attorney; and the chairman of the Town of Wescott, where SIST is located.
The group allegedly under investigation for the threat is responding to the accusations.
Members of the religious group summoned the media to a hotel in Shawano Thursday evening. In a statement released by the group's CEO, Isaacson denies the group made any threats against any local officials and instead accuses the local officials of a conspiracy to steal money from her group in an effort to run them out of town.
Isaacson says the group is simply a non-profit organization run by a 12-member board that operates a school overseas.
"The school is located in India currently, and in 2000 we developed plans to bring -- we hoped to build -- a school in the Shawano area."
Isaacson says the accusations lodged against her group are false and the result of Shawano officials not wanting the group to operate in the area.
"SIST has never done anything to anybody," Isaacson says. "SIST would never do anything to anybody. It's a scandal."
A scandal Isaacson says was created by the same people claiming to be on the alleged list.
SIST claims the alleged list was made up after the group was scammed by a man they believe was working on behalf of Shawano officials and the FBI.
"He was a hired gun from the city to rob us of $175,000, and when the city found out we were going to Washington, DC, to higher-up officials to complain about the scam, then they quickly hurried up and created a hit list to terrorize and rouse and inflame the public in this community," Isaacson says.
SIST is so confident it did not wrong that Isaacson invited anyone to come in and investigate the situation.
"I think we need a world court here. We need somebody else to come in and investigate this matter," she says.
[link to www.wbay.com]
Shawano Area Officials Change Their Routines
Updated: Nov 13, 2008 05:54 PM CST
Shawano Area Officials Change Their Routines
By Natalie Arnold
We are seeing very different reactions to this situation from the top community leaders named as potential victims.
All of the officials we've talked with are very nervous. They're taking different ways home, they're not going to work every day.
Some are reaching out to the public, but one top leader continues to avoid the media. That's Shawano's mayor.
Lorna Marquardt has not returned any of our calls and is always unavailable when we go to the city offices.
In fact, the only time we have seen the mayor was at Wednesday night's city council meeting where she was surrounded by police officers.
Town of Wescott Chairman Mike Schuler says it is important for community leaders to talk publicly.
"I'd like to tell them do their normal thing as much as possible but watch their surroundings, watch and see if there's anything different. It shouldn't just be the 60 people on that list that talked to the FBI that should be looking around, seeing if there's something unusual," Schuler said.
That is absolutely what Schuler himself is doing. While he's in his office, he keeps the lights off.
Schuler says that's because the FBI told him he was on the list, too.
The religious group believed to be at the center of an investigation is in his township. In fact, the group's property is right across the street.
"I think everybody's afraid, but the only thing we have to remember is we do have support with the FBI, with the city P.D., with the Shawano County, and they're behind us 100 percent and they're really working hard to this resolved," Schuler said.
BUT TODAY THE FBI SAID ITS INVESTIGATION COULD TAKE A LONG TIME
REPORTING LIVE IN SHAWANO, NA, A2N.
[link to www.wbay.com]
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