Federal cattle roundup spurs Bunkerville rancher to file criminal complaint
Bunkerville rancher Cliven Bundy is continuing his feud against the Bureau of Land Management for last month’s roundup of his cattle on public land on the Gold Butte range, saying he will file a criminal complaint Friday morning with the Metropolitan Police Department based on the federal agency’s actions.
“We believe the BLM acted illegally. We have decided to file reports at the Sheriff’s Office,” reads a news release from Bundy, 68, and his wife Carol.
The announcement, sent by email at 10:15 p.m. Thursday, asks for witnesses and supporters of his protest of the BLM’s roundup of his cattle to join him in filing the complaint at 10 a.m. Friday at Las Vegas police headquarters, 400 Martin Luther King Blvd.
“If you witnessed or were subjected to any of the following crimes, please come and file a report with us,” the news release says.
His list of allegations includes “men blocking access to public land … harassing people for taking photos” and other claims such as impersonating police officers, threatening to use stun guns and “threatening to fire upon unarmed civilians” as well as use of attack dogs and “men pointing weapons.”
“We believe that the BLM men who pointed guns at over 1,000 people on April 12th near the I-15 freeway south of Mesquite committed a criminal act and the Clark County sheriff’s office should be required to investigate,” Bundy’s statement reads.
BLM officials have been mum about the armed standoff in which militia members in support of Bundy were photographed carrying and pointing assault rifles near the state Route 170 bridge that spans the Virgin River between an Interstate 15 exit, 70 miles northeast of Las Vegas, and Riverside Road on the south side of the bridge.
During the standoff, BLM agents allowed the release of more than 300 cattle from a corral where they were being kept following the weeklong, helicopter-assisted roundup.
In an interview outside his ranch house Tuesday, six miles south of Bunkerville, Bundy told the Review-Journal the BLm had rounded up 384 cattle, but some had been killed during the roundup and two bulls had been shot.
Contact Keith Rogers at krogers@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0308. Find him on Twitter: @KeithRogers2.
