The Virginia Anarchists

The Virginia Anarchists (so named in this wiki) is a group of homegrown terrorists who attempted a stage a large-scale terrorist attack across the U.S. They appeared in Season Eleven of Criminal Minds.

Background
The anarchists were organized by Eric Rawdon, a psychopath who secretly did not share their ideology and simply wanted to cause destruction for the sake of it. Rawdon was eventually arrested, convicted of conspiracy, and imprisoned in Virginia. However, the anarchists continued to operate under Rawdon's instructions and began planning two operations: a prison break to free Rawdon, and an attack against the U.S.

Modus Operandi
The group's plan against the U.S. was highly organized, methodical, and multifaceted. It was conducted in several stages:


 * 1) The group framed Hotch of planning an attack on the BAU headquarters in Quantico. They took elements of press conferences led by Hotch and then spliced them together to form the warning "Today will change everything". They also somehow acquired or copied Hotch's credit cards and used them to purchase the necessary supplies needed to build a powerful bomb, which would be traced back to him. Once the group was ready to execute the plan, they used an app called "The Storm" to spoof Hotch's cellphone number, called 911, and played a recording of the spliced message. This would result in a SWAT team arresting Hotch and prompting the rest of the BAU to try and prove his innocence, therefore distracting them long enough for the rest of the plan to be carried out.
 * 2) The group then infiltrated prisons around the U.S., including the one Rawdon was being held in, to orchestrate prison riots and breaks. They first somehow gained access to the control rooms, which allowed them to open the doors of cells and release inmates, who would kill any prison guard they came across and then raid the gun safes. Any surviving guards that managed to flee to safety in the control room would be killed or taken hostage by the anarchists waiting there, who would swap their clothes with those of the guards. Once a SWAT team breached the control rooms and unknowingly killed the hostages, the anarchists would then ambush and kill them before swapping clothes with them as well and making their getaway. During the prison breaks (except for Virginia), the group released the serial killers first to ensure the police would be as preoccupied as possible with them.
 * 3) Once Rawdon and his accomplices escaped the prison, they would've regrouped with other anarchists at Ivory Tower, transported explosives they manufactured, and used them to attack unspecified targets. Because the BAU managed to thwart Rawdon's escape, this stage was never achieved.

Profile
No official profile of the group was made, as the BAU were more focused on their leader Rawdon.

Known Members

 * Eric Rawdon . Portrayed by Jonathan Camp.
 * Johnson . Portrayed by Travis Johns.
 * Asher Douglas . Portrayed by Patrick Bristow.
 * Numerous other unnamed members . All portrayed by uncredited actors.

Known Victims

 * 2016: The Virginia prison break:
 * An unnamed prison guard
 * Two unnamed prison guards
 * Captain Grant Howard
 * Two unnamed SWAT agents
 * Doctor Tara Lewis
 * An unnamed SWAT agent
 * Herschel and Bring
 * Spencer Reid and Jennifer Jareau
 * Note: The anarchists planned to commit at least one terrorist bombing, though no targets were specified and the attack was thwarted before it could even be carried out.

Appearances

 * Season Eleven
 * "The Storm"