Feds: Online novel played role in Ga. militia plot

ATLANTA - A suspected member of a fringe north Georgia militia group intended to use the plot of an online novel as a model for plans to attack U.S. federal law officers and others, authorities said.

Court documents state that 73-year-old Frederick Thomas of Cleveland told others that he intended to model their actions on the online novel ``Absolved,'' which involves small groups of citizens attacking U.S. officials.

The four, who federal authorities arrested Tuesday, were expected to appear in court Wednesday.

They were part of a group that also tried to obtain an unregistered explosive device and sought out the complex formula to produce ricin, a biological toxin that can be lethal in small doses, according to a federal complaint.
The four listed in the indictment are Thomas; Dan Roberts, 67; Ray Adams, 65; and Samuel Crump, 68. The men live in the north Georgia towns of Cleveland and Toccoa. (See separate story.)