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Ryan Bundy’s Alleged Escape Attempt Reportedly Thwarted As He Awaits Trial For Refuge Occupation

By Patricia Ramirez
Published on: 12:49 PST, Jul 18, 2016

According to federal prosecutors, Multnomah County Jail guards thwarted a Ryan Bundy escape plan back in April. Ryan Bundy, brother of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation organizer and self-proclaimed “patriot” Ammon Bundy, had reportedly braided his bedsheets into roughly 12 to 15 feet of rope when prison guards found the contraband while tossing his cell earlier this year.

As OPB reports, the Ryan Bundy escape rope was reported to the court during a Portland pretrial hearing today. They told the judge that, on an April 8 search of Ryan Bundy’s cell, jail staff found the handmade escape rope. Reportedly, Bundy had also hidden a “container of extra food containers” in Bundy’s cell, as well as unauthorized extra clothing.

According to Ryan Bundy, he had no plans to escape his incarceration. He says he is just a “a rancher trying to practice braiding rope.” He further implied that the escape allegations being levied against him are lies.

“It’s self-serving speculation and simply not true, your honor.”

Despite Ryan Bundy’s alleged escape attempt denial, the staff at the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office have confirmed that the incident involving the handcrafted rope (made from jail sheets) did take place. However, Ryan Bundy was lucky enough not to have attempted escape charges added to his laundry list of pending legal troubles. Rather, the jail reportedly opted to simply write him up for “contraband” and “misuse of jail property.”

KATU calls Ryan Bundy “one of the leaders” of the armed occupation of the Oregon wildlife reserve, and the local news outlet is currently investigating why it literally took months for the public to be made aware of Ryan Bundy’s alleged escape attempt.

Earlier in July, Ryan Bundy filed a motion with the court to allow him to be jailed in the same location as his brother, the infamous and agreed-upon leader of the gang of Oregon occupiers. Ammon is currently facing a plethora of federal charges for his leadership of the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge suffered from significant and costly damage as a result of dozens of people illegally moving into the refuge. The nearby town of Burns, Oregon, was also terrorized for weeks due to the illegal January occupation.

A judge reportedly granted the relocation request filed by Ryan Bundy, who has been serving as his own lawyer, despite his alleged escape attempt.

At the end of June, Ryan Bundy’s brother Ammon filed a request to have his pending trial, scheduled for September 7, delayed. According to Ammon Bundy, he wanted extra time to prepare his defense. He stated that he had inadequate time to prepare his case with his Utah-based legal counsel due to his incarceration. Ammon Bundy also asked the court to grant him a pre-trial release.

The judge in the case denied both of Ammon Bundy’s requests.

Ammon Bundy, 40, led himself and a total of 26 defendants (including brother Ryan Bundy) as they illegally occupied the Oregon bird refuge. The lot of them have been charged with conspiring to impede federal workers at the refuge through “intimidation, threats or force.”

The Bundy brothers and many of their fellow defendants face an uphill battle for their 2016 occupation. The group continues to allege that it was a protest against the federal government’s “abuse of power and authority” when it comes to federal land. Many of the Oregon occupiers won’t be done with their legal woes when their Oregon-related criminal trials conclude, either.

Some of the Oregon defendants (including Ammon and Ryan Bundy) are also facing federal charges related to their participating in yet another armed standoff that took place in Nevada in 2014. In that instance, armed protesters (many of whom call themselves “patriot,” while outsiders often refer to them as “domestic terrorists”) engaged in an armed standoff with BLM employees who were seeking to remove the illegally grazing cattle of Cliven Bundy (Ammon and Ryan’s father) from federal land.

What do you think? Did the Multnomah County handle Bundy appropriately? Or should Ryan Bundy have faced additional criminal charges for allegedly attempting to escape?

[Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]

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