FBI raids Catholic Worker house in Des Moines in search of pipeline sabotage evidence

The FBI raided a Catholic Worker House in Des Moines early Friday in search of evidence linked to efforts to sabotage construction of the Dakota Access pipeline.

About 30 law enforcement personnel, led by agents armed with guns who identified themselves as being from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, entered the Catholic Workers' Berrigan House just north of downtown Des Moines shortly after 6 a.m., said Frank Cordaro, a former Catholic priest who resides at the house. The agents left about 10:30 a.m. with boxes and sealed bags of property they had seized.

"As soon as they realized we wouldn't put up a fight, the guns went down, and they didn't cuff us because we told them we wouldn't give them any trouble," Cordaro said.  "They were nice. They got us coffee, but we didn't get to see any of the stuff that they took, except to watch it leave."

Cordaro said it was clear the FBI was seeking evidence related to claims of responsibility for pipeline damage by Jessica Reznicek, 36, and Ruby Montoya, 27. Both women reside at the house at 713 Indiana Ave. Members of the Catholic Worker movement place a heavy emphasis on social justice issues.

The two women held a news conference outside the Iowa Utilities Board on July 24 in which they described their use of arson and other efforts to halt construction of the pipeline in Iowa and South Dakota. The pipeline was developed by Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners.

Huston Pullen, an FBI spokesman in Omaha, gave a terse statement Friday when asked about the execution of the search warrant. 

"I can confirm that there was law enforcement activity in that area today, but I can't really divulge what went on," he said.

Des Moines police spokesman Sgt. Paul Parizek said local officers were at the Berrigan House on Friday morning assisting with an FBI investigation, but he deferred further questions to the FBI.

Crude oil from North Dakota's Bakken oil patch began flowing on the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline on June 1 to a distribution hub at Patoka, Illinois. The two women have told reporters they began efforts to stop the construction project Nov. 8, 2016. Their first incident of destruction involved burning at least five pieces of heavy equipment on the pipeline  project in northwest Iowa's Buena Vista County.  New reports indicate  the arson caused damage estimated at about $2.5 million.

Cordaro said  authorities provided him Friday with a copy of a search warrant signed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Celeste Bremer of Des Moines. The search warrant said federal agents were looking for property of Reznicek and Montoya that included financial records, clothing, footwear, computers, mobile phones, tools capable of cutting metal, samples of potential accelerants, duct tape, literature pertaining to environmental extremism, pipeline maps, and other property.  

One concern about the raid is that federal agents took attorney-client privileged information from the two women that could affect their ability to obtain a fair trial, Cordaro said. This included legal notes and other information they  had been collecting in consultation with attorneys, he added.

Reznicek and Montoya have said they researched how to pierce the steel pipe used for the pipeline and in March they began using oxyacetylene cutting torches to damage exposed, empty pipeline valves. They said they subsequently used torches to cause damage up and down the pipeline in Iowa and into part of South Dakota, moving from valve to valve until running out of supplies. 

Reznicek and Montoya were arrested by state troopers July 24 for damaging a sign at the Iowa Utilities Board's offices and were charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief. But they were released on bond and have not been charged with any federal crimes for pipeline sabotage.

Montoya and Reznicek declined to comment Friday through Cordaro. Shortly after the FBI raid, they left for a trip to Minnesota to meet with other Catholic Workers there, Cordaro said, adding the trip was planned before the FBI raid.

Cordaro acknowledged Friday that it appears likely the two women will face federal criminal charges related to their claims of responsiblity. 

"If I were a betting man, I would bet that charges are going to be filed. Why would they raid our house and take all of our stuff?" he said.

The pipeline has encountered strong opposition in Iowa, particularly from environmental activists. The project, which cuts diagonally through 18 Iowa counties, also has been fought by farmers who have criticized the use of eminent domain to obtain access to their land for the pipeline. Litigation involving the pipeline is still pending in federal court and before the Iowa Supreme Court.

During the July 24 press conference, the two women said they acted because the courts and government value corporate property and profit over inherent human rights to clean water and land.

"Some may view these actions as violent, but be not mistaken," Reznicek and Montoya said in a statement. "We acted from our hearts and never threatened human life nor personal property. What we did do was fight a private corporation that has run rampantly across our country seizing land and polluting our nation's water supply. You may not agree with our tactics, but you can clearly see the necessity of them in light of the broken federal government and the corporations they protect."

Reznicek and Montoya are active in the Des Moines Catholic Worker community, which was founded in 1976 in response to the Gospel Call for Compassionate Action as summarized by the Sermon on the Mount. However, the Catholic Workers are not all Catholics and they are not controlled by the bishop of the Des Moines Roman Catholic Diocese. The Catholic Workers also have no financial ties to the diocese.

The Catholic Worker community has four houses in Des Moines that focus on a nonviolent lifestyle while serving the poor. Some members of the community have been critical of the Des Moines Roman Catholic Diocese and have called for changes that include ordination of women as Catholic priests and stances against corporate agriculture and the military-industrial complex.

Both Reznicek, a Des Moines native, and Montoya, who previously lived in Phoenix, Arizona, are experienced political activists. Reznicek became involved in political movements about six years ago with Occupy Wall Street protests. Montoya came to Iowa last year after becoming involved in pipeline protests at the Standing Rock reservation in North Dakota. Both were involved in the "Mississippi Stand" protest against the pipeline along the Mississippi River in southeast Iowa.