OR police arrested one of the armed protesters occupying Malheur National Wildlife Refuge on Friday.
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The center’s executive director Kierán Suckling tried to speak but the activists screamed and booed him.
Public land, like the refuge and Bureau of Land Management property, belong to the people – all of us – and the federal government’s job is to manage the land for multiple use.
The shouting match happened just after occupiers arrived for the briefing carrying security cameras they said they had removed at the request of residents, the newspaper reported.
“This in my opinion is unreasonable search”, said LaVoy Finicum, referencing the Fourth Amendment. He invited the Federal Bureau of Investigation to pick up the cameras, which he claimed it had installed.
The chairwoman of the Burns Paiute Tribe has asked federal officials to bring criminal charges if any ancient artifacts are damaged or missing from a wildlife refuge now occupied by an armed group.
Video shows a fracas breaking out when the conservation group tries to speak, with militants yelling insults at them with a bullhorn. He also condemned the government for harassing families.
Hall’s visit comes as members of the refuge occupation say they hope to reschedule a meeting previously planned for Friday, in which they had planned to outline their strategy for ending the occupation.
The occupation started January 2 as a protest over two area ranchers who had been convicted of arson being returned to prison to serve longer sentences.
The group, led by the sons of a Nevada rancher who with a large group of heavily armed men successfully stared down federal agents in a 2014 dispute over grazing fees, had earlier made a public call for help with supplies to cope with the winter weather, with temperatures at the reserve expected to dip below freezing in the coming days.
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Authorities also say they recovered a second stolen vehicle from the refuge, but provided no other details.
