A member of the Aryan Brotherhood, who authorities say recently made a menacing phone call to the Maltz Museum in Beachwood, was detained on Friday and charged with illegally possessing a firearm.
Federal authorities have described Blake Meyer, 25, as an “enforcer” for the deadly neo-Nazi gang. According to court records, he previously attacked a man in prison on the orders of a gang leader.
On Friday, FBI investigators raided Meyer’s houses in Kirtland and Mentor, taking a loaded handgun, ammo, a rifle scope, a laptop, and a 3D printer that they say he used to construct at least one firearm.
Meyer is charged in federal court in Cleveland with being a felon in possession of a handgun. At least until Thursday’s scheduled detention hearing, he will remain in custody. His lawyer, Alvaro DeCola, declined to comment.
Meyer’s social media posts, which included photographs of him with weaponry, significant quantities of cash, an AR-style rifle, and references to militia groups, prompted the FBI to launch an investigation in January. Agents also observed two SS lightning-bolt tattoos on his chest, associated with the murder squads of Nazi Germany.
In July, investigators received a video of Meyer flashing a gun, claiming to have built it using his 3D printer, and firing a single shot inside a home with marijuana plants visible.
Meyer called the Maltz Museum, a Jewish cultural institution, on July 31 to inquire about its purpose and operating hours. According to court records, he informed an employee that Adolf Hitler’s worldview “was appealing to him,” that his involvement with the Aryan Nations would be an issue, and finished the call with “Heil Hitler.”
Meyer became furious on September 4 when a Huntington Bank location in Mentor refused to pay his check. According to court records, he stormed out after telling staff, “I’m really going to jail over a bank” and “I’ll be back with something a lot bigger and a lot stronger.”
A Mentor police officer later called Meyer. Meyer stated that he was traveling at 120 mph at Dead Man’s Curve in Cleveland when he threatened to commit suicide. He stated he was panicked because he believed he was being accused of robbing the bank and acknowledged having schizophrenia.
Meyer allegedly told the police that he had recently obtained two fully automatic AR-15 weapons from a friend in Geneva because he was afraid drug traffickers would target his residence. He handed the officer a photograph of one firearm and stated that he had fired it.
Two days later, Meyer contacted the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center to inquire about the status of his investigation. He admitted to being a convicted felon, said that individuals were chasing him, and stated that he knew licensed firearms dealers who would sell him guns.
Meyer admitted to being a member of the Aryan Brotherhood during the search on Friday, claiming that he joined for jail safety. He told agents that he had blacked out his SS tattoos and was raised Jewish from the ages of three to seven.
Meyer’s criminal history includes a 2021 burglary conviction in Lake County for entering into a home and taking electronics.
He also threatened to kill a witness if he spoke with authorities. Meyer was first sentenced to 90 days in jail and two years of probation, but he violated probation twice and spent nine months in prison, where he committed an assault on behalf of an Aryan Brotherhood official, according to court records.
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