A neo-Nazi 'active club' counts several serving and former members of the US military among its crew, according to the group's own records and social media posts.
Lance Corporal machine gunner Mohammed Wadaa, currently under court-martial on insubordination charges, and ex-Marine Corps Staff Sergeant Gunnar Naughton, who was dismissed for stealing ammunition, are part of the Clockwork Crew.
The Clockwork Crew, formerly known as Crew 562, claim to be California's first 'active club' - something that law enforcement sources back up, The Guardian reports.
Active clubs are a strand of the white nationalist and neo-fascist movement that train in combat sports, but there are concerns that they are preparing for political and racially motivated violence. The presence of these clubs is of growing concern to US law enforcement.
Stephen Piggott, a researcher with the Western States Center who has tracked the evolution of active clubs, told NPR: 'They are really focused on a couple of things. 'One is centering, organizing and trying to recruit people through combat sports ... but also, preparing for political and racially motivated violence.'
The Clockwork Crew was founded in 2021 and researchers believe it currently has a dozen members - including the Lance Corporal. The recruitment of military members underlines the US army's regular struggle with extremism in the ranks.
Gunnar Naughton (pictured), who was dismissed from the military for stealing ammunition, is among those to be recruited by the Clockwork Crew
The crew has significant overlap with other active clubs in California - as well as with the Golden State Skinheads whose members stabbed several anti-fascist demonstrators during a clash outside the state capitol in Sacramento in 2016.
But researchers fear that the neo-Nazi group are part of a 'more hostile far right' than other organisations.
Jeff Tischauser, a senior researcher at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), told The Guardian: 'We're seeing a more aggressive, more hostile far right. Groups like the Clockwork Crew are more willing to take their hatred into public spaces and shout people down outside of synagogues and in communities they perceive as predominantly Jewish.'
Last year, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) listed the Clockwork Crew as a white nationalist hate group after some members took part in one of Goyim Defense League's antisemitic marches.
Some Clockwork Crew members also launched a tirade at a passerby from a van draped in white nationalist propaganda as they drove through San Diego.
The neo-Nazi group was co-founded by Mohammed Wadaa - a Lance Corporal with the 3rd battalion, 5th regiment of the 1st United States Marine Corps division out of Camp Pendleton.
Photos from his social media posts show that he lives on the Marine Corps base just north of San Diego where he has an Adolf Hitler poster hanging in his room.
Wadaa, who claims one of his relatives fought alongside the Nazis to suppress anti-fascist groups in former Yugoslavia, has taken part in banner drops, marches and sticker campaigns.
The 25-year-old, from Oregon, was sentenced to 11 months in a military prison after pleading guilty to disobeying Marine Corps orders prohibiting advocating extremist ideology and having extremist tattoos. He will also have his rank reduced to Private and be given a bad conduct discharge.
The Clockwork Crew was co-founded by Mohammed Wadaa - a Lance Corporal with the 3rd battalion, 5th regiment of the 1st United States Marine Corps division out of Camp Pendleton
Wadaa founded the far-right group with Nicholas Daniel Large after they met at the Church of Aryanity.
The pair have managed to recruit members from the far-right community, especially from the White Lives Matter network, but they have also rounded up members of the US military.
Among the military members recruited is Gunnar Naughton who - along with five others - was caught stealing more than 10,000 rounds of ammunition and several grenades from a Camp Pendleton depot in 2021.
During his sentencing, Naughton - who pled guilty to theft charges in July 2021 and was dismissed from the Marine Corps - claimed he was bullied by other marines who pressured him to commit the crime.
Naughton first appeared around the Clockwork Crew in July 2022 and the following month used volunteer work in Kentucky after devastating floods to spread neo-Nazi propaganda.
Twenty-two-year-old Ezra Liel, who joined the Army National Guard in 2021, is another Clockwork Crew member who posts photos of his neo-Nazi tattoos online, while it's also believed he was one affiliated with the now defunct Atomwaffen Division responsible for five murders and two bomb plots.
Former Marine Ciros reserve Jayde Milne, who often refers to his military experience in group chats, is also a member of the Clockwork Crew.
Far-right extremists have plagued modern US military for a long time such as the race riots and Ku Klux Klan demonstrations on bases during the war in Vietnam.
Last month, the Boston Globe discovered at least 82 current and former military members who have a far-right ideology have been arrested in the last five years.
The Biden Administration in its early days spearheaded efforts to crack down on extremism in the military, working with the Pentagon to identify 'insider threats' through better vetting and recruitment.
Veterans are known to be targeted for recruitment by anti-government groups for their weapons training and combat skills. The Oath Keepers, a far-right militia linked to the Jan 6 Capitol attack, counted many veterans among its members.
Camp Pendleton has been contacted for comment.
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