Yellowstone Worker With White Supremacist Views Arrested on Gun, Drug Charges
A kitchen worker in Yellowstone National Park, reported to have made white supremacist and threatening comments, has been charged with drug and firearms crimes, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court on Thursday.
Timothy Raymond Stevens, 22, from Florida was charged with delivery of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of a firearm in violation of national park rules.
Stevens was scheduled to make his initial appearance at the federal Yellowstone Justice Center in Mammoth Hot Springs on Monday.
The case started on the morning of Aug. 10 when the manager of the Roosevelt Lodge told a park ranger that Stevens would be receiving a shipment drugs, has firearms in his vehicle and has been making white supremacist comments.
The manager also told the ranger that one of Stevens' roommates said, "Stevens has been making white supremacist comments and that he is concerned he will become an active shooter," according to the criminal complaint.
Three other co-workers came to the lodge's human resources office to file similar complaints. At one point, the manager left the room to deal with park visitors approaching a bear and the lodge.
Stevens had entered the room, saw the co-workers filling out complaints and told them "'you can't do this to me,'" according to the complaint.
One of the co-workers told Stevens that they were there only to make statements about his attitude. Stevens left a note on his work schedule which read, "'Tim is the sole survivor & the pantry boss. Donald Trump of the pantry I am.'"
After the co-workers left, Stevens told the lodge manager, "'everyone thinks I am crazy, that I'm gonna shoot everybody' and 'people are being racist against me because I'm a white redneck from Florida.'" Stevens also denied he was about to receive a package of drugs.
The park ranger interviewed the co-workers.
One told her that Stevens says "that he hates the Roosevelt Lodge, and hates the people working there."
Another co-worker said that in June he went shooting with Stevens who has two handguns and a shotgun. That co-worker said he's seen Stevens high on marijuana and possibly cocaine. He added Stevens told him, "'given the right tools and opportunity he could and would hurt someone based on his point of view,'" according to the criminal complaint.
Another co-worker confirmed the story about the guns and Stevens' hatred for the people he works with, adding that he said, "'the kitchen only hires minorities, lowlifes and drug addicts,'" according to the criminal complaint. Stevens also told the co-worker that he was expecting a package of drugs.
On the evening of Aug. 10, two rangers went to the kitchen where Stevens was cutting cantaloupe, saw that he was speaking nervously with a co-worker, and asked him to step outside. Stevens told them he feels he is being targeted by his co-workers because he is a "'white redneck'" and that he would be a "'protector'" if anything ever happened at Roosevelt Lodge. He added that he had two handguns, but didn't mention a shotgun.
On Aug.13, the Mammoth Hot Springs postmaster notified the ranger that the post office received a package addressed to Stevens. That package contained three ounces of marijuana.
Two days later, Stevens received another package containing 28.2 grams of a mushroom plant that field-tested positive for psilocybin, according to the criminal complaint.