State Department employee found to be leader of a white nationalist group

WASHINGTON - Matthew Gebert is a foreign affairs officer assigned to the Bureau of Energy Resources.

The Southern Poverty Law Center says he used the pseudonym “Coach Finstock” to express his extremist views through various online platforms.

Their investigation also found that Gebert used his Northern Virginia home to hold parties in order to recruit for his white nationalist organization.

Gebert, an alumnus of George Washington University, joined the State Department in 2013. He is not an Obama or Trump appointee but rather a civil servant.

The investigation points out that he recruited for a hate group called “DC Helicopter Pilots," the extremist organization is known for tweeting out racist memes meant to recruit young people.

On a podcast back in May 2018 named “The Fatherland," Gebert stated, “Whites need a country of our own with nukes, and we will retake this thing lickety-split.” He goes on to say, “That’s all we need. We need a country founded for white people with a nuclear deterrent. And you watch how the world trembles.”

Gebert even admitted to taking part in the Charlottesville “Unite the Right” rally. He claimed he wore a hat and sunglasses in order to hide his identity.

“I came back in one piece,” Gebert said. “Un-arrested just with some mild war wounds that frankly I’m kind of proud of.”

Gebert is still employed by the federal government, however, there are reports he’s been placed on leave.

Ari Wilkenfeld, an attorney and expert on civil service employment laws says it’s difficult to simply fire a federal worker.

“When you’re a federal employee, however, you’re deemed to have a property interest in your job,” said Wilkenfeld. “We talk about due process a lot of the time and we often misunderstand it. Due process means the government cannot take away your rights or your property without some sort of procedure. Well, employees are deemed to have a property interest in their own jobs, meaning you can’t take it away unless there’s a procedure.”

Several residents in Gebert’s neighborhood told FOX 5 they were shocked to learn the activity taking place just feet away from their own front doors.