Law enforcement arrested 31 members of the white nationalist group Patriot Front on June 11, 2022, after a concerned citizen reported seeing the men load into a U-Haul truck near a hotel in Coeur d’Alene. Police stopped the vehicle just blocks from the Pride in the Park celebration at City Park.
Inside the U-Haul, officers found the men wearing matching khaki pants, blue shirts, white balaclavas, and hats with Patriot Front insignia. They were carrying metal shields, reinforced flagpoles, at least one smoke grenade, and tactical medical kits. Police also recovered paperwork detailing what appeared to be an operations plan to march into the Pride event and continue rioting down Sherman Avenue.
Among those arrested was Patriot Front founder Thomas Rousseau. The suspects came from 13 different states — only two were from Idaho. All 31 were charged with misdemeanor conspiracy to riot and posted bond within 24 hours. Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White said the men clearly came to the area intending to cause a violent disturbance.
The arrests drew national and international media attention. Mayor Jim Hammond stated that hate and violence have no place in Coeur d’Alene and praised the police department’s preparedness.