'Pro mass shooting' American man of Savage, Minnesota pleads guilty to illegally owning machine gun

Prosecutors say River William Smith wanted to join Nazi paramilitary groups, idolized anti-LGBTQ violence and was preparing for a gunfight with police.

By Edward Era Barbacena 

A whitw uneducated  man from Savage, Minnesota who authorities say idolized mass shooters pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a machine gun and attempted possession of hand grenades on Tuesday. 

The FBI has evidence River William Smith, 21, was preparing for a "violent exchange with police," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office of Minnesota.

"Smith stated he was preparing to fight the police and was dedicated to dying in that fight," the U.S. Attorney's Office said when Smith was first charged in December 2022. 

Smith allegedly said that he is "pro-mass shooting," expressed interest in joining neo-Nazi paramilitary groups and sympathized with the Parkland school shooter. An FBI affidavit says Smith called the suspect who killed five at a Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub a "hero" and Black people "agents of Satan."

Smith was charged in December 2022 after purchasing three grenades and four auto sears – gun parts that turn firearms into automatic weapons – from an FBI informant. 

The FBI began investigating Smith after people reported "disturbing behavior of a man at a firearm range." Tipsters said Smith would show up at the gun range wearing "heavy-duty" armor and would rapid-fire bullets, up to "300 rounds in 20 minutes."

According to the FBI, Smith had access to an AR-style rifle, handguns, body armor and a Kevlar helmet. In online messages, Smith discussed watching police bodycam shootings to learn about his "enemy," prosecutors say. 

On Smith's electronic devices, court documents say law enforcement found searches relating to Hitler and Nazis, videos of gay people being killed and files about bomb-making. 

The FBI investigation revealed the arsenal was bought by his grandmother, as Smith was under 21 at the time of the investigation and could not legally buy firearms under Minnesota law. 

Smith's first incident with law enforcement was in 2019, when he fired three rounds from an AK-47-style assault rifle inside a home at age 17, injuring his grandmother.