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SALT LAKE CITY — Police and sheriffs along the Wasatch Front echoed a warning on social media Monday that a violent group was planning to descend on their communities and across the country, even though no evidence supported the speculation.
Some of the law enforcers said their posts followed tips from fearful Utahns and noted the online chatter was not credible. But several in the state say they sparked unnecessary alarm.
After someone flagged a post for a deputy in Box Elder County, Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Dale Ward said he believed it a hoax and confirmed with the Statewide Information and Analysis Center it was unsubstantiated.
As a reminder to those in the rural county to remain vigilant, Ward penned a post from his office’s public Facebook page, pointing out that information on social media alleged “antifa plans to go door to door in protest from Logan to Provo” and that the group would shoot those who answer “just to prove that Black Lives Matter.”
After President Donald Trump faulted antifa for violence in protests over the death of George Floyd and other black people who have died at the hands of police, chatter that the far-left group was planning to storm U.S. cities spread online. The speculation was also raised by conservative news outlets and social media accounts favoring Trump.
Twitter said it removed a widely shared post saying antifa would move into white neighborhoods after finding it was sent by a white supremacy group. Facebook took down accounts created by white supremacists posing as antifa, a category of leftist militant groups that confront neo-Nazis and white supremacists.
Ward wrote in his now-deleted post that “We cannot substantiate the validity of this information,” according to a screenshot, and urged people to verify who is at the door before answering.
While many thanked him, critics called an emergency dispatch line at such a high volume that deputies feared anyone in crisis could not get through.
Ward took down the post and penned an apology, but he said “the bell got rung and there was no taking the ring back.”
As some pledged to gather their guns, others alleged fearful homeowners would shoot and kill Latter-day Saint missionaries. Several said the post cast those peacefully protesting police brutality as aggressors. Others slammed the office for further fraying their nerves after a Salt Lake City protest erupted in violence over the weekend.
Ann Gray, a former Willard resident of 13 years who now lives in Idaho, said the post was based on “whispers,” not facts, and left her in horror.
“They put everyone, basically, on attack — ‘if you see a black person, attack them,’” she said. “It’s a great place to live, and I’d love to think that people wouldn’t be that stupid. Even one or two is too many.”
Distressed, she telephoned her daughter Emily Gray, 18.
Emily Gray, who is African-American and Asian, is visiting a friend in Weber County on the heels of high school graduation. She attended a peaceful protest earlier in the week and is thinking of dropping by her old neighborhood.
She acknowledged feeling “a little sketched out,” but “I don’t believe people will hurt me,” she said. “I would hope if I were to visit people that I grew up with and love and everything, that they would hopefully recognize me and realize that I’m not there to harm them.”
Emily Gray said she believes the sheriff’s office did the right thing by trying to inform community members, but should have first vetted the rumors more thoroughly.
Ward agreed.
“But it had been a long day. I wanted to go home,” he said. “I didn’t tell anybody to shoot through the door, for hell’s sakes, I just simply said to ask who was on the other side.”
Ward said he never anticipated rioting in Utah and while a wave of violent visitors to its small cities seemed incredibly unlikely, it suddenly did not strike him as wholly impossible.
After the Box Elder post vanished, many in Provo messaged or called the city’s police department to run down the online rumors, said Provo Police Sgt. Nisha King.
The department has fostered trust by being transparent and posting updates frequently, King said, and she found the warning appropriate to share after the state analysis center confirmed it was not credible. She did not name any groups, but instead referenced “violent individuals” and noted investigators in Utah found no credibility to the messages.
“Communicating with them is more important than the potential for that to cause panic. I think the panic and concern was already there, and for those that didn’t hear about it, it’s dispelling something before they hear about it,” King said.
“There is a fine line,” she added, between keeping the public updated and lending credibility to unsubstantiated reports.
Shaundria Ewell, of Springville, said she felt assured when she saw King’s post, but wished the department had withheld the details. Similar announcements from three other police agencies appeared in her feed, fanning her concern.
When she explained to her kids why they would play only in the backyard this week as a precaution, her 11-year-old son volunteered to jump in front of his three sisters if a gunman approached, she said.
“While I think it’s a good idea to be on alert,” Ewell said, “I did find it to be unnerving for something that was not considered valid.”
Contributing: Associated Press
