Man indicted for shooting Arizona Democratic office facing new felonies

A man already indicted for shooting at a local Democratic National Committee Office is facing new charges related to allegations that he posted anti-Democratic signs outfitted with razor blades and bags of white powder attached to them.

Jeffrey Michael Kelly, 60, was arrested for his alleged involvement in four separate incidents of political violence. Police have tied him to a series of shootings at a Democratic National Committee office in Tempe, as well as placing the razor-blade and powder-laden anti-Democratic signs in nearby Ahwatukee.

Prosecutors said they believe he was allegedly planning a “mass casualty” event in Arizona. A search of his home revealed 120 guns, 250,000 rounds of ammunition, body armor and a grenade launcher, they said in court documents filed last month.

Kelly is accused of shooting at the Democratic office on three different occasions between Sept. 16 and Oct. 6. He initially used a C02 powered gun before escalating to .22 caliber firearms, according to Tempe Police.

Over the course of the three shootings, he fired more than 20 times, causing damage to the building late at night, according to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office. Police were tipped off that Kelly might have been involved after they released photos of his vehicle, which had been spotted near thefts of Democratic yard signs in 2022.

After they began watching Kelly, they saw him placing signs that read “Dems kill Jews,” “Dems Lie” and “Never Harris,” referring to Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. The signs had razor blades and bags of white powder attached to them with the message “biohazard” and “F*** you! Play stupid games win stupid prizes! Guess the poison.”

Kelly was indicted on terrorism charges last month for the incidents involving the DNC office, but had not yet faced an indictment for the signs police saw him put up. The newly obtained grand jury indictment shows that he has since been indicted for four counts of “unlawful use of a biological substance or radiological agent,” a class 2 felony.

The indictment notes that Kelly placed “a simulated infectious biological substance” at multiple locations with the “intent to terrify, intimidate, threaten or harass.” The four counts are for each of the signs Kelly placed along the roadway in Ahwatukee.

Kelly is being represented by an attorney who uses a gun range that Kelly also frequents and has represented militia members before. During Kelly’s initial appearance, attorney Jason Squires argued that Kelly is a “sportsman” who owns a “multitude of firearms,” adding that they were all legally obtained.

The Arizona Mirror found a LinkedIn profile that appears to belong to Kelly in which he said he worked for Honeywell. His attorney said he held top secret clearances for his job until 2020.

Kelly has also posted unfounded conspiracy theories on a Facebook page found by the Mirror. As far back as 2014, Kelly was amplifying the debunked and racist “birtherism” claims about former President Barack Obama.

On Jan. 6, 2021, while rioters were storming the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn the election for former President Donald Trump, Kelly changed his Facebook banner to a “Stop The Steal” logo, the movement that pushed unfounded claims around the 2020 election results.

He also posted frequent pro-gun memes, including an Islamaphobic one, and his profile picture is an edit of the infamous photo of Kathy Griffin with the severed head of Donald Trump but replaced with Biden and captioned “this is still funny right?”

The Department of Homeland Security has warned that election deniers connected to the far-right may attempt to bomb drop boxes or commit other acts of violence in the coming weeks.

A probable cause statement against Kelly disclosed that he is also under two separate federal investigations. Among the evidence police uncovered are Google searches Kelly allegedly performed looking up the address of the DNC office. The police also noted that Kelly “has finances and resources to conduct further acts of terrorism” and frequently travels across state lines.

The grand jury indictment also notes that Kelly “has a large sum of money and access to lots of guns and ammo” as the rationale behind a $500,000 cash bond. Kelly also has a $500,000 cash bond related to the terrorism charges making his total cash bond $1 million.

Kelly’s attorney claimed he did not own the vehicle at the center of the case, however, it was found on Kelly’s property, where it was covered in blankets. Police said it had been recently cleaned. Police also found two expired out-of-state license plates that were seen on the vehicle fleeing the scene.

Kelly also reportedly researched silencers and additional modifications for his weapons.

During their investigation, Tempe police found spent ammunition in Kelly’s trash that matched the caliber of rounds fired at the DNC office.

Kelly is set to appear in court on Nov. 5.

Arizona Mirror is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arizona Mirror maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jim Small for questions: info@azmirror.com. Follow Arizona Mirror on Facebook and X.