Justin Mohn video sparks “anti-militia bill” conspiracy theories

The arrest of Justin Mohn, a Pennsylvania man who allegedly videotaped himself decapitating his father and posted the footage online, has sparked conspiracy theories that the incident was a false flag operation designed to add weight to a recently introduced bill to inhibit militias.

Mohn, 32, was arrested in Fort Indiantown Gap on Tuesday. He was charged with first-degree murder, abuse of a corpse and possession of an instrument of crime with intent after he published the video, which also included him ranting about various issues, including the federal government. Mohn said his father had been a federal employee.

In the video, Mohn railed against the government for what he described as the “destruction” of the economy, claiming it had “declared war” on United States citizens. According to local news station WPVI, which reviewed part of the video before it was taken down, he also referred to himself as a militia leader. Mohn has since been found to have authored several books and pamphlets which purport to outline his political beliefs.

In a pamphlet titled “America’s Coming Bloody Revolution,” he said “Americans will have to weigh what is worse—allowing themselves to lose freedom and independence or killing their own family members, teachers, coworkers, bosses, judges, elected leaders, and other older generations” because they may be “traitors” who “wish to take away the freedom and independence that comes with America, democracy, and free market capitalism.”

The pamphlet was published on Amazon and included chapters called “Why a Violent Revolution is Inevitable” and “How Revolution Can Be Successful.”

The incident has prompted unverified and unevidenced claims that Mohn’s alleged actions were part of a coordinated attempt to justify two bills introduced to the House and Senate—on January 11 and 16, respectively—that are designed to limit the actions members of a militia can undertake.

“This is VERY SUSPICIOUS timing as Congress is trying to push Senate Bill 3589—the anti-militia bill,” one person wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday evening in a post that has been viewed over half a million times.

They added: “Major FF [false flag] warning.”

“Justin Mohn sure looks like the perfect Democrat Patsy for the sake of… getting support to ban militias,” Laura Loomer, a conservative political activist, said in a tweet referencing the Senate bill that has since been viewed nearly 620,000 times. “Just another ‘coincidence.'”

“Kind of odd timing that Justin Mohn decided to behead his father & called for militias to target government employees while at the same time HR.6981 and s.3589 are in the hopper,” another X account said in a post viewed over 55,000 times.

Other X users went further, claiming Mohn’s actions and the bills were “a massive ploy to eliminate a constitutional right,” a “psyop,” and that the government had “orchestrate[d] an event to make people think their radical policy is necessary.”

None of the theories named a specific part of the government they supposed was responsible for Mohn’s alleged actions.

HR.6981 and S.3589 both contain draft provisions that make it an offense to engage in certain paramilitary activity, including interfering with government proceedings with a dangerous weapon, assuming the role of a law enforcement officer, and traveling across a state or national border to do so.

Conspiracy theories alleging federal involvement in major incidents are not uncommon. Questions have lingered over the Las Vegas mass shooting in 2017 after federal investigators were unable to determine why the gunman, Stephen Paddock, opened fire on a music festival, killing 60 and injuring a further 867.

“Psyop” is a portmanteau of “psychological operations” and refers to plans constructed by the military and CIA to influence a target audience to act in a specific way to meet a government objective.