A member of the armed militia occupying a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon was arrested Friday after driving a government vehicle to a local supermarket, officials said.
The arrest was the first made since the group took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge on Jan 2. in protest of federal land grabs. Law enforcement have largely kept their distance from the refuge in order to avoid a violent confrontation.
Police arrested Kenneth Medenbach, a 62-year-old resident of Crescent Oregon, after he drove a car owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to the market Friday, the Harney County Sheriff’s office said in a statement.
He was charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, Reuters reported.
The militia group, led by Nevada cattle ranchers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, had previously called on the public to send them supplies to cope with the winter weather.
Instead, people mailed in sex toys, glitter and nail polish to the refuge, prompting online video complaints by the occupiers.
The group had planned to host a community meeting on Friday to discuss their reasons for occupying the refuge and determine an exit strategy, but the meeting was cancelled for lack of a venue.
• Kellan Howell can be reached at khowell@washingtontimes.com.
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