KKK Fliers Found In Fredericksburg On MLK Day: Police

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — Some city residents experienced on Martin Luther King Jr. Day what those in Loudoun County dealt with over the weekend — Klu Klux Klan recruitment fliers in plastic bags being left at neighborhood homes, according to Fredericksburg Police. These were weighted down with birdseed while the ones in Loudoun were weighted down with candy.

Around 7:45 a.m., a resident reported finding a flier with KKK propoganda in a clear plastic bag also containing birdseed in the 100 block of Braehead Drive. Police found similar bags at other nearby residences. But there may have been more neighboring areas.

There were reports of the fliers in Spotsylvania, and retired Fredericksburg police officer Gregory Wigglesworth told the Free Lance-Star he and at least one neighbor received fliers in their Spotsylvania neighborhood off Harrison Road.

"We really need to pray for love, that love will take hold of what’s going on in this country now," Wigglesworth, who's black, told the newspaper." Because I feel there’s a very negative. . .relationship brewing among members of our community, members of our country. We can’t continue this rhetoric and have a healthy society."

Meanwhile, at a march to celebrate the MLK holiday in Loudoun County along East Market Street in Leesburg, TV station WJLA reported participants carrying signs with such slogans as "No KKK, no racist USA," and "Unity, not hate."

"I guess racism still exists," Leesburg resident James Turner told the station. "The problem always exists, but it gets better through time. But there will always be some fringe population."

In Leesburg, police said fliers were found throughout the northeast quadrant of town. They received the first report 10 p.m. Friday outside a home in the 700 block of Aurora Court NE. Police say they believe the material was distributed randomly and wasn't targeted toward specific homes or people.

Leesburg Police said the fliers "were most likely distributed due to the close proximity of the day the nation honors the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday."

Police, who are working with the FBI to identify where the fliers came from, again said there's no indication any of the homes were targeted. Anyone with information is urged to call Leesburg Police at 703-771-4500, the LCSO at 703-777-1021 and Fredericksburg Police at 540-373-3122.

The incidents are not a first for the Fredericksburg area or Loundoun County. In early 2017, similar fliers were left in various Spotsylvania neighborhoods. Late last October, several downtown Leesburg residents found bags of candy along with images and literature representing the Klu Klux Klan on their doorsteps.

Leesburg Police said they received complaints from several people, but inasmuch that there were no threatening messages in the bags, they were protected by free speech. In Frederickburg's incidents, spokesman Sarah told the Free Lance-Star whoever left the fliers could be charged with misdemeanor littering.

Images via Fredericksburg Police