A federal jury has convicted a southwest Minnesota man alleged to be an active member of a white supremacist organization of illegal gun possession and marijuana trafficking charges, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Following a five-day trial, Andrew David Munsinger, 41, of Redwood Falls, was found guilty of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition and one count of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. The case unfolded following a year-long investigation by the FBI, whose agents said they gathered audio and video recordings of Munsinger possessing and shooting firearms, and stating he could not legally have the weapons.
Federal charges unsealed last year detailed an FBI probe involving paid informants and trips around the country to participate in weapons training and other events on behalf of the Aryan Freedom Network (AFN), a Texas-based Nazi group which purportedly has chapters in 25 states.
Introducing himself as “Thor” to other AFN members, Munsinger expressed a hatred of Jews and Black people and at one point alluded to desires to “conduct nefarious activity” in Minneapolis’ George Floyd Square, according to charges.
In the months leading up to his arrest this week on charges of illegally possessing ammunition as a felon, Munsinger plotted to trade one informant a homemade AR-15 rifle for a handgun that could be modified to fire fully automatic and penetrate body armor.
According to a sworn affidavit from an FBI special agent on the Minneapolis division’s joint terrorism task force, Munsinger backed down from the plan in December after believing he was being surveilled by law enforcement.
The federal criminal complaint describes extensive surveillance of Munsinger that included secretly recorded conversations at firing ranges in Redwood County, weapons trainings in Indiana and AFN functions such as an October 2023 bash called “Aryan Fest” in which attendees crafted large wooden swastikas to be burned in ceremony.
Though Munsinger didn’t go through with the gun trade, he was still arrested on charges of of illegally possessing ammunition. He has prior convictions for first-degree methamphetamine possession and third-degree sale of narcotics, both of which barred him from possessing firearms or ammunition. He billed himself as a “huge gun guy” who owned “a few ARs and handguns” and said he had access to a machine shop to make firearm parts without serial numbers.
