Crime & Safety

Richmond Man Who Fired Shots At White Supremacist Rally Arrested

Tyler Tenbrink is being held in the Alachua County Jail with his bond set at just under $3 million.

GAINESVILLE, FL — A Fort Bend County man, who allegedly has ties to white supremacy groups, was arrested Thursday after he fired a gun at protesters outside of a Richard Spencer rally at the University of Florida.

Tyler Tenbrink, 28, of Richmond, and brothers Colton Fears, 28, and William Fears, 30 of Pasadena were taken to the Alachua County Jail and are charged with attempted homicide.

Officials said the Fears brothers and Tenbrink drove up to the rally in a silver Jeep, shouting obscenities and taunting protesters with Nazi salutes.

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Tensions escalated further when, William and Tyler Fears encouraged Tenbrink to shoot at and kill the protesters.

Officials said Tenbrink took out a gun and fired a shot at protesters standing at a bus stop, which hit a building nearby, KPRC reported.

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Tenbrink, who is a convicted felon, faces addition charges of having a weapon in his possession, KIAH reported.

The three men drove off, but one of the protesters gave police a license plate number for the Jeep.

An off-duty Alachua County deputy spotted the three men on Interstate 75 and police conducted a felony stop on the Jeep.

All three men are in the Alachua County Jail.

The Fears brothers are each being held on $1 million bond and Tenbrink is under a $3 million bond.

Image: Self-described white nationalist Tyler Tenbrink, of Houston, Texas, is handcuffed by Florida Highway Patrol troopers as the troopers assist his safe departure from a speech by Richard Spencer, who popularized the term 'alt-right', at the University of Florida campus on October 19, 2017 in Gainesville, Florida. Tenbrink was later arrested, along with friends William Fears and Colton Fears, in relation to a shooting following the speech. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images)

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