Nevada man charged in potential plot to attack Seattle colleges

A Nevada man arrested with an arsenal of weapons near the University of Washington in Seattle last week has been charged with multiple felonies, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said Tuesday.

Justin M. Jasper, 22, of Las Vegas, was charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, two counts possession of a stolen firearm, and possession of an incendiary device.

According to court documents, Jasper stole a 1998 Dodge Ram from the home of an acquaintance in Butte, Mont., sometime before Tuesday, July 2. The truck was reported stolen the morning of Wednesday, July 3, and officers with the University of Washington Police Department conducted a high-risk felony traffic stop when the vehicle was spotted on campus late that night.

Inside the vehicle were a stolen rifle, a stolen shotgun, body armor, knives, a machete, and six firebombs described as Molotov cocktails. Police also recovered detailed maps to the campuses of Seattle University, the University of Washington and South Seattle Community College, according to court documents.

“In addition to that, he had documents indicating that he had, or felt some sympathies for protests going on in the country of Brazil as well as political turmoil in the country of Syria,” said Ian Goodhew, deputy chief of staff for the prosecutor’s office. “Implying that that’s why he was near these university campuses with these particular weapons.”

Goodhew said officials will continue to investigate what, if anything, Jasper was plotting.

“Certainly, the combination of weapons, body armor and what appear to be incendiary devices suggest that he was out to cause damage at a minimum, and hurt people or potentially kill people on the extreme end,” he said.

Jasper is being held on $2 million bail.