Feds Arrest Randolph Man,

Was Legislative Candidate

By M. D. Drysdale

A Randolph man who ran for state representative as a libertarian in 2006 remains in federal prison after being arrested last Wednesday on charges of aiding and abetting New Hampshire tax protesters Ed and Elaine Brown.

Robert Wolffe, 50, who lives on Highland Avenue, has been charged with a single count of supplying needed goods to the Browns in their Plainfield, N.H., home, which they have fortified in order to escape arrest on tax evasion charges.

The Browns' case has been a cause celebré in New Hampshire for months, as they have threatened violence against law enforcement authorities if their capture is attempted. They have been convicted of several tax-related crimes but are insisting that there is no legal law requiring the payment of income taxes.

So far, authorities have not attempted their forcible arrest.

The Browns have attracted a group of supporters, and last Wednesday federal authorities seized four of those supporters, on various charges. It was one of the most dramatic moves in the stand-off.

Wolffe, one of the four, was arrested in Hartford. The others were Cirino Conzales, 30, of Alice, Tex.; Daniel Riley, 40, of Albany; and Jason Gerhard, 22, of Brookhaven, N.Y.

In an affidavit supporting the arrest, the U. S. Attorney's office alleged that Wolffe delivered 500 pounds of dehydrated food, camouflage clothing, fishing equipment, and solar-powered security lights.

Bond Denied

The Randolph man has been in jail since his arrest. On Monday prosecutors argued in federal court in Concord, N.H. that he should continue to be denied bail because he is at risk to flee. After various arguments were presented, Wolffe agreed not to contest the decision.

The evidence that Wolffe might flee, prosecutors told the court, included the fact that on the day of his arrest, Wolffe's wife Valeri had placed weapons, ammunition, and two packed suitcases into the back of her SUV. She told marshals that she intended to pick her husband up after his release and go away for a few days, according to a report in the Concord Monitor.

Marshals said that when they originally went to Wolffe's Highland Avenue house, they had found weapons, including an AK-47 and a Ruger rifle, in several places around the house. When they returned later with a warrant, the weapons were gone, and it was discovered they had been packed into the SUV, the marshals reportedly said.

Wolffe had allegedly told investigators that he was ready to fight and die for the Browns, and prosecutors said the evidence appeared strong that were Wolffe released he would make his way to the Brown compound, guns and all.

Moderate Candidate

In running for state representative in 2006, Wolffe, a heating technician, betrayed little of the radical views that he is now alleged to have.

In a Herald questionnaire and in a community forum, he espoused mainline libertarian positions. He ran on a platform of "common sense," which included reduction of regulations and generally moderate positions. Although he said he was a 20-year Army veteran, he was leery of American involvement in Iraq, saying that it smacked of U. S. "imperialism."

As a candidate, Wolffe did, however, propose the repeal of the income tax in Vermont, to be replaced by "a restricted and fair tax for Vermont residents" and he told The Herald in an interview that "We cannot tax ourselves into prosperity."

Valeri Wolffe supported his candidacy with a letter to the editor praising her husband for his "honesty and fairness" and remarking on his belief that "the government is not our master."

Wolffe came in third in the four-person race, with 884 votes, well behind incumbents Patsy French and Jim Hutchinson, who both tallied more than 2000.

In a letter to The Herald March 29, however, Wolffe's public views had grown much more radical, and he praised the position of Ed and Elaine Brown that the income tax is illegal.

"The government is stealing from us," he wrote, and he reserved his strongest criticism for tax attorneys who "perpetuate the lie and are complicit in an incredible scheme." Such attorneys "should be disbarred and have (their) credentials revoked," Wolffe wrote.

The letter concluded with a flourish about the income tax: "There is no law! We should not be afraid of our government; the government should be afraid of us!"