First arrests made following St. Paul church attack, ‘more to come’

By Elyse Apel
The Center Square

Federal officials have made three arrests in connection with a protest that disrupted a Sunday morning church service in St. Paul.

U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi made two of the announcements Thursday morning, with a third announced Thursday afternoon.

“So far, we have arrested Nekima Levy Armstrong, who allegedly played a key role in organizing the coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota,” Bondi said on social media. “Listen loud and clear: WE DO NOT TOLERATE ATTACKS ON PLACES OF WORSHIP.”

Just minutes later, Bondi announced the arrest of Chauntyll Louisa Allen. She promised “more to come.”

At 1 p.m., Bondi announced a third arrest of William Kelly.

Armstrong is a civil rights lawyer who is accused of helping organize the protest. Allen is the clerk of the St. Paul Board of Education. Kelly was one of the protestors at the church and posted a number of videos on his social media from the protest that later went viral.

The arrests were made by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the investigative branch of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

This comes following widespread calls for arrests in the wake of the protest, which quickly captured attention far beyond Minnesota.

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the protest, which was organized in part by members of Black Lives Matter Minnesota.

Video posted by the group shows protesters chanting “ICE out” and “justice for Renee Good” during the service at Cities Church. Another video circulating on social media shows Kelly calling congregants “pretend Christians” and “comfortable white people.”

Caleb Phillips, a congregant at the church, told The Center Square in an exclusive interview that the protestors were seated throughout the congregation before the service began.

“The entire congregation came alive. Individuals who are planted from front to back throughout the entire place stood up,” Phillips said. “It felt like we were surrounded, because they were all throughout the congregation.”

Reports allege the protesters discovered one of the church’s pastors works for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, calling the protest a “clandestine mission.”

The protest comes in the wake of the Jan. 7 killing of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good during an encounter with ICE officers conducting enhanced immigration enforcement.

Charges have not yet been announced.