KKK flyers distributed in parts of Carroll County
Westminster resident finds items in bags with birdseed
A Westminster resident found Tuesday morning that Klu Klux Klan flyers had been distributed to neighborhood lawns and driveways, including her own.
Jennifer Sharpsten, a resident of the Fenby Farms neighborhood, said she went out to check the mailbox at about 10:30 a.m. and found one of the flyers on her driveway.
She walked around the street and found seven total on her street and another adjoining it, she said. She figured that other neighbors might have been out earlier in the day and removed them.
Spokesperson Tim Brown said the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office had received two calls about flyers as of Tuesday at 1:45 p.m., on Moores Branch Circle and Uniontown Road. These streets are within the Westminster ZIP code but outside Westminster city limits.
About 4:45 p.m., Sheriff Jim DeWees said the flyers had been spread in neighborhoods along northwest parts of the county and toward areas outside of New Windsor.
He said that if anyone had Ring doorbell footage or other video recordings that could help identify an individual or their vehicle, the Sheriff’s Office would be happy to take a look at it.
“If we can track down the individual that put out that garbage, we will, and we will interview them,” he said. He said they would consult with the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office to determine if criminal charges were merited.
Sharpsten shared photos of the flyers with the Times. They were placed in plastic bags weighed down with birdseed. There were three different versions, each containing white supremacist propaganda messages. Twolisted logos and contact information for the KKK. A third listed information for the “National Socialist Movement.”
A phone number listed on the flyers directs callers to a voicemail message from “the Loyal White Knights of the KKK.” It promises to get back to those who leave a name and number.
Similar leaflets, also in baggies weighed down with birdseed, were found in Eldersburg and Sykesville in November 2018.
Sykesville Police Chief Micheal Spaulding said Tuesday no arrests were made in connection to the 2018 incident. He added that there have also not been any other KKK-related incidents in the town limits since that one in 2018 incident. DeWees said also said that incident was the most recent he was aware of in Carroll County.
Chief Jason Etzler said the Taneytown Police Department had not received any calls as of 5 p.m. Tuesday, but did experience a similar incident about a year and a half ago.
Westminster Police Chief Thomas Ledwell said just before 6 p.m. Tuesday that the department spoke with Sharpsten, and had not received any other calls regarding any flyers. An officer was sent to canvass the Fenby Farms neighborhood, he said.
If a resident of Westminster finds these flyers, they can contact the Westminster
Police Department’s nonemergency number at 410-848-4646. If they live outside of the city limits, they can contact the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office nonemergency number at 410-386-2900.