‘Freemen’ Stalemate Reaches 50th Day at Montana Ranch
A standoff between the FBI and anti-government “freemen” at a ranch near here reached its 50th day Monday with no sign the deadlock will end soon.
All was quiet at the 960-acre ranch where about 20 armed freemen are holed up, ringed by 100 FBI agents. Reporters watching the ranch saw the freemen doing chores and riding horses, which they have begun to use more frequently, possibly to save fuel.
Two young girls could be seen playing basketball near a log cabin. Single-engine FBI surveillance planes flew overhead from time to time across clear skies.
Over the weekend, the freemen set up a second lookout post, placing a trailer on the highest hill on the ranch.
The freemen reject U.S. government authority, refuse to pay taxes and hold white supremacist religious beliefs.
The standoff began March 25 when two freemen leaders were arrested and charged with a $1.8-million fraudulent check scheme, stealing equipment from a television news crew and threatening a federal judge. Others at the ranch face federal charges.
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