2 Men Found Guilty In 'Rise Of The Moors' Standoff In Wakefield: DA

WAKEFIELD, MA — Two men part of a group that had an over 8-hour armed standoff with police have been found guilty of multiple charges, according to a statement from Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan.

A total of 11 men were arrested after a standoff with police on I-95 in Wakefield in July 2021.

The incident started when a state trooper noticed a group of men attempting to fuel their vehicles in the breakdown lane on I-95. The men were in military-style uniforms and carrying rifles and handguns. The group told the trooper they came from Rhode Island and were heading to Maine for "training."

Jamhal Tavon Sanders Latimer was armed with an "AR-style large-capacity rifle and falsely claimed that he was the leader of an armed militia from Rhode Island," according to prosecutors.

See related: Standoff With Heavily Armed Group On I-95 Ends With 11 Arrests

Two others were also carrying loaded, large-capacity AR-style rifles with large-capacity magazines.

Police asked the group to put their weapons down but they refused, leading to the standoff, according to prosecutors.

The incident led to a shelter-in-place order being issued for parts of Wakefield and Reading.

Police said they seized three large-capacity AR-style rifles from the group's vehicles, along with a bolt-action rifle, a semi-automatic shotgun, two “drum” large-capacity magazines capable of holding fifty rounds or more, dozens of thirty-plus round large-capacity magazines, and three semi-automatic pistols with hundreds of rounds of ammunition in varying calibers.

A member of the group posted a series of videos on YouTube throughout the standoff making various claims. The speakers did not identify the name of their group in any of the videos. Other media outlets have reported they call themselves "The Moorish American Arms" and "Rise of the Moors," which is the name of the YouTube account that streamed all three videos.

The two men recently found guilty of charges are Latimer and Steven Anthony Perez.

Latimer was found guilty of unlawful possession of a large-capacity weapon, unlawful possession of a large-capacity feeding device, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of a shotgun or rifle, improper storage of a rifle or shotgun near a minor, use or wearing body armor during a felony, and unlawful possession of ammunition.

Perez was found guilty of unlawful possession of a firearm and use or wearing body armor during a felony.

“The defendants in this case disrupted multiple communities and jeopardized the safety of many residents who were traveling or intending to travel on a busy Fourth of July weekend,” Ryan said in a statement. “Both Jamhal Tavon Sanders Latimer and Steven Anthony Perez demonstrated a disregard for our laws and failed to comply with the directives of multiple police agencies on scene."

Latimer and Perez are scheduled to be sentenced July 16.