The Acting U.S. Attorney in Vermont will seek the death penalty for the woman accused of the January murder of Vermont Border Patrol Agent David Maland, 44, following a request from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
[RELATED: New Details on Vermont Border Patrol Murder Suggests Suspects Were Members of “Trans Militia”…]
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the grand jury indictment of Teresa Youngblut, 21, of Seattle on Thursday, charging her with the murder of a federal agent, assault with a deadly weapon against two other Border Patrol agents, and related gun crimes.
“We don’t forget our own,” said the Houlton Border Patrol in Maine, responding to the announcement.
On January 20, Maland reportedly conducted a stop of a vehicle in Coventry, Vermont. Youngblut and her German national companion, the trans-identifying Felix “Ophelia” Baukholt whose immigration status was in question, were already known to law enforcement after a hotel owner reported that they were heavily armed and wearing tactical gear.
According to court documents, both Youngblut and Baukholt were armed when Maland stopped their vehicle, and Youngblut reportedly exited the vehicle without warning and opened fire, killing Maland.
Other border patrol agents returned fire, killing Baukholt and injuring Youngblut.
Capital punishment is the maximum penalty for the murder charge filed against Youngblut and, following Bondi’s direction, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Vermont Michael P. Drescher filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty against the accused killer.
According to an investigation from independent journalist Andy Ngo, both Baukholt and Youngblut were members of the Ziz Group, a cult of personality surrounding the transgender-identifying male originally known as Jack Lasota.
According to Ngo’s investigation, Youngblut went by the pseudonymous first name Milo, and members of the Ziz Group have been implicated in multiple murders across the country.
