By Collin Roth
On Tuesday afternoon, 20 year-old Kvon R. Smith travelled from his home in Milwaukee to the Capitol in Madison on the day Governor Scott Walker gave his State of the State address. Hours before the speech, Smith was arrested by authorities in the Capitol rotunda after Smith posted a video to Facebook that morning showing liquor bottles and voicing his intent to bring Molotov cocktails to the Capitol.
By Wednesday, Smith was tentatively charged with four felony counts of possession of Molotov cocktails, one felony count of creating a bomb scare, one felony count of second degree recklessly endangering safety, and one misdemeanor for disorderly conduct.
But if making the news and scaring those working in the Capitol wasn’t enough, Smith has gained a new found fame online.
A video posted to the YouTube by one of the frequent protesters at the Capitol alleges to capture the arrest of Smith on Tuesday:
The Twitter account for Smith has soared to nearly 41,000 followers, even though the young Milwaukee student has Tweeted just 26 times. New followers include members of the media, fellow students, and people just curious for an insight into the mind of the man who created the bomb scare at the Capitol.
Whether looking at Smith’s Facebook page or his 140 character Tweets, those interested in Smith quickly discover a man who speaks of violence and is devoted to many radical movements. From his Twitter cover photo that features Smith at a Free Gaza protest, to his final Facebook post that seems to indicate that his actions at the Capitol were dedicated to among others Osama Bin Laden and Che Guevera, Kvon Smith embraced radical political movements such as Idle No More, Boycott Palermo’s, and Justice for Palestine.
According to Smith’s mother, Kvon suffers from mental illness and may not have been taking medication. Kvon Smith checked himself into a mental hospital on December 30 and apparently checked himself out last Friday.
Authorities say that Smith’s Molotov cocktails did not contain the proper materials to create the crude explosive device. No one was injured in the incident and Governor Walker’s State of the State address proceeded as planned.