Brandon Russell | |
|---|---|
 2017 mugshot | |
| Leader of theAtomwaffen Division | |
| In office 2013–2017 | |
| Succeeded by | John Cameron Denton[1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1995-07-01)July 1, 1995 (age 29) Florida, United States |
| Citizenship | Bahamas, United States[2] |
| Alma mater | University of South Florida[3] |
| Occupation | Ex-Florida National Guardsman Neo-Nazi leader |
Brandon Clint Russell (born July 1, 1995) is a Bahamian and American Neo-Nazi leader, terrorist and the founder of theneo-Nazi groupAtomwaffen Division in 2013.[4]
In September 2017, Russell pleaded guilty in federal court to possessing an unregistereddestructive device and illegally storing explosives; in January 2018, he was sentenced to five years in prison, but was later released from prison in August 2021. In February 2023 he was indicted for planning attacks on electric substations inBaltimore.
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(March 2024) |
Brandon Clint Russell was born on July 1, 1995, in Florida.[4] He is a dual citizen of the U.S. and The Bahamas.[2]He studied nuclear physics at theUniversity of South Florida as an undergraduate and became aFlorida Army National Guardsman.[5]
Russell, who went by the handle "Odin", first appeared on the right wingIron March webforum on March 22, 2014, at age 18.[6] Iron March was afar-right[7]neo-fascist[7] andneo-Nazi[7]web forum.[8] The site opened in 2011 and attracted neo-fascist and neo-Nazi members, includingmilitants from organized far-right groups and members who would later go on to commitacts of terror.[7]
Russell created contacts with American and international neo-Nazis and in an October 2015 post on Iron March, he announced the formation ofAtomwaffen Division, which had been three years in the making. He stated that Atomwaffen was for very fanatical, ideological people who do military training, absolutely "no keyboard warriors". Dozens responded to the thread, which stated they had 40 members across the U.S., mostly in Florida.[9]
Russell visited Atomwaffen's ideological comrades,National Action, in the United Kingdom.[10] He also went to meet with the leaderships ofGolden Dawn,Nordic Resistance Movement,Russian Imperial Movement andCasaPound in a neo-Nazi event in theRussian Federation in 2015.[11][12][13]
In May 2017, Russell's friend and roommate Devon Arthurs was accused of killing two of his roommates and fellow Atomwaffen Division members with an assault rifle. Arthurs was arrested following a hostage situation inTampa, during which he allegedly told police that he shot 22-year-old Jeremy Himmelman and 18-year-old Andrew Oneschuk earlier that day to prevent further violence.[14]On the night of Devon Arthurs' arrest, then 21-year-old Russell was also arrested and questioned by local police and the FBI. While it was determined that Russell was not involved in the homicides, the deaths drew investigators' attention to a large stash of explosives in Russell's garage; they foundammonium nitrate,nitromethane, homemade detonators,[15][16] andhexamethylene triperoxide diamine. HMTD has been used to makeimprovised explosive devices by groups such as al-Qaeda, and ammonium nitrate and nitromethane were used byTimothy McVeigh, in theOklahoma City bombing. The authorities also foundthorium andamericium, two radioactive substances, in Russell's bedroom. Russell had a framed photograph ofTimothy McVeigh in his bedroom.[5][17][18] The authorities also discovered guns, various Atomwaffen paraphernalia andneo-Nazi propaganda.[19] Yet Russell was released.[5]
TheFBI issued an arrest warrant for Russell on explosives charges and the FBI bulletin warned he might be planning a terrorist attack. Russell was arrested again with another member inMonroe County, Florida. The car they were driving contained assault rifles, body armor and more than 1000 rounds of ammunition which they had acquired after the shooting. Russell claimed the explosives were used to power model rockets, but according to an FBI bomb technician the explosives were powerful enough to destroy an airliner.[20][5] The prosecutors alleged Russell "planned to use the explosives to harm civilians, nuclear facilities and synagogues."[21]
In September 2017, Russell pleaded guilty in federal court to possessing an unregistereddestructive device and illegally storing explosives; in January 2018, he was sentenced to five years in prison.[19] While in jail awaiting sentencing, he sent bomb-making instructions to his followers.[22] While less than six months into his five-year sentence he issued a statement recorded inside United States Penitentiary in Atlanta. Russell thanked his comrades for their "undying loyalty and courage," and issued a warning: "There is no room in this world for cowardly people... The sword has been drawn. There is no turning back."[22] On a separate occasion Russell also stated "I don't care how long you put me in jail, your Honor … as soon as I get out, I will go right back to fight for my White Race and my America!'"[23] He was released from prison on August 23, 2021.[24]
In February 2023, a federal grand jury indicted Russell for allegedly conspiring with Sarah Clendaniel, a woman fromMaryland he met in prison,[25][26][27] on planning attacks on electric substations in theBaltimore area. Russell allegedly shared open-source maps of infrastructure and pointed out substations he said would cause a "cascading failure" if they were taken out.[28][29] A magistrate judge in Florida ordered Russell held pending trial.[30] On February 4, 2025 Russell was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to damage an energy facility.[31]
Karin Slaughter's bookThe Last Widow features Brandon Russell as a neo-Nazi leader.[32]
Following Russell's arrest and imprisonment, he was replaced as leader of AWD by John Cameron Denton
Russell, a former student at the University of South Florida (USF), was an active member of the Army National Guard who told officers the explosives came from his time in USF's engineering school
In 2015 while in St. Petersburg, [Russell] met with Taylor of American Renaissance and the leaders of the Nordic Resistance Movement of Sweden, the National Action group of Germany, CasPound of Italy, and Golden Dawn of Greece.
In March 2015, several well-known American white supremacists, including Jared Taylor, spoke at the International Russian Conservative Forum in St. Petersburg. The event was organized by the Rodina party and heavily attended by RIM.
Russell traveled to a neo-Nazi event in Russia in 2015, where he made contact with organizations such as Greece's Golden Dawn, the Nordic Resistance Movement, and designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM).