The mysterious duo who were pulled over in Coventry, Vt. in the deadly shootout are leftist trans militants with alleged ties to a trans terror cell allegedly involved in three other homicides.
On Inauguration Day, the shocking news that a US Border Patrol officer had been shot dead near the Canadian border in Vermont in an incident involving a now-deceased foreign national was overshadowed by coverage of Donald Trump's events in the nation's capital.
One week later, a 21-year-old Washington woman was charged over the deadly incident, but little has been reported about her and her deceased accomplice, a German man.
The Post Millennial can report that the mysterious duo who were pulled over in Coventry, Vt. in the deadly shootout are leftist trans militants with alleged ties to a trans terror cell.
Around a week before the Jan. 20 attack, federal law enforcement had been surveilling German man Felix "Ophelia" Bauckholt and Seattle woman Teresa "Milo" Consuelo Youngblut, after staff at a Lyndonville, Vt. motel reported seeing them with black tactical clothing, weapons and protective militia-style equipment.
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View on XWhen law enforcement contacted them, they claimed to be looking to purchase property in the area. They promptly checked out of the motel afterward on Jan. 14.
Bauckholt was a biological male who identified as trans and used feminine pronouns. He was an award-winning youth math genius who later graduated from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. German media reports that he comes from the Freiburg area.
German trans person Felix 'Ophelia' Bauckholt died in the shootout
Around 2021, he was hired as a quantitative trader at Tower Research Capital in New York. He lived in New Jersey. It is believed Bauckholt was in the US on an H-1B visa. The DOJ alleges he was armed in the car and tried to aim his firearm before being shot dead.
Youngblut, who is accused of firing the surprise shots that killed Air Force Veteran and border agent David Maland, was injured by returning fire. She is a biological female who identifies as trans and lists her neo-pronouns as "xe/xem/xyrs" on social media. She was a University of Washington student.
Youngblut's family had reported her missing to Seattle Police in May 2024. Her family said she was in a controlling relationship and cut off contact, according to the police report. Youngblut filed a marriage application with a man named Maximilian Snyder in November 2024, though it doesn't appear they actually followed through, according to public records.
Court filings by prosecutors say Youngblut was estranged from her family and traveled internationally in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Her social media account on BlueSky shows she followed Antifa and far-left accounts.
An image of Teresa 'Milo' Consuelo Youngblut released by Newport City Inn and Suites in Vermont
While receiving in-patient medical care at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire, Youngblut was charged with one count of using a deadly weapon while assaulting a Border Patrol agent and one count of using and discharging a firearm during the assault.
"I did not think it was likely Ophelia would be involved in direct violence—she was not aggressive and I didn't know about her having weapons," Jessica Taylor, a friend of Bauckholt, says.
Taylor, a 32-year-old trans woman in Berkeley, Calif., has met Bauckholt repeatedly over the years and was the first person to confirm his identity as "Ophelia." Bauckholt was known online among trans networks in the artificial intelligence fields.
"[Ophelia] may have been radicalized by some person or group," Taylor speculates.
Taylor showed TPM written communications Taylor had with Bauckholt in 2022 where he discussed being in contact with members of the "Ziz" group. The group was or is a California Bay Area-based violent trans commune centered around a cult of personality of leader, "Ziz," whose real name is Jack LaSota.
"Her [Youngblut] associations with other individuals suspected of violent acts also warrants caution," a prosecutor wrote in a court filing on Jan. 27. "The individual who purchased the firearms the defendant and Bauckholt possessed on January 20, 2025, is a person of interest in a dual-homicide investigation in Delaware County, Pennsylvania."
Alleged members of the "Ziz" group are under investigation for a double homicide of an elderly couple in January 2022 in Pennsylvania and the murder of an 82-year-old in Vallejo, Calif.. The court filing strongly suggests Youngblut and Bauckholt were in contact with that group.
"Both the defendant and the person who purchased the firearms in Vermont that the defendant and her companion possessed on January 20, 2025, are acquainted with and have been in frequent contact with an individual who was detained by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania during that homicide investigation; that individual is also a person of interest in a homicide investigation in Vallejo, California."
Federal prosecutors allege Teresa Consuelo Youngblut and Felix Bauckholt received at least one of their firearms from a person of interest in murder cases where details match up to the 'Ziz' group killings
Bauckholt flew back into the U.S. in the hours before the double homicide in Pennsylvania, the prosecutor said, citing data from a Department of Homeland Security database.
Snyder, the Seattle man who applied for a marriage license with Youngblut, was arrested on Jan. 24 in Solano County, Calif. and charged with murder over the killing of the Vallejo elderly victim. It is unclear if he is the "person of interest" mentioned in the Vermont federal court filing by prosecutors.
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Maximilian Snyder, who applied to marry Teresa Youngblut in Seattle, was arrested in Solano County, Calif. for the murder of a trial witness and attempted murder survivor set to testify against members of the 'Ziz' group
A spokeswoman declined to comment when asked about Bauckholt and Youngblut's gender identities and details about the prosecution's allegations.
"As per our general policy, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Vermont does not comment on ongoing cases beyond the public record," a spokeswoman said.
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View on XAfter the shooting, a bomb squad investigated Bauckholt and Youngblut's Toyota Prius Hatchback. Investigators found two pistols, ammunition clips, night-vision goggles, two full-face respirators, a ballistic helmet, 48 rounds of hollow point ammunition, shooting range targets, interstate lodging information, two-way radios and a dozen electronic devices, some of which were wrapped in foil.
US Border Patrol agent David Maland, an Air Force veteran, was shot and killed
Firearms and a cache of ammunition were found by law enforcement in Youngblut and Bauckholt's car
Law enforcement found tactical equipment and a dozen electronic devices in the duo's vehicle
Taylor, Bauckholt's friend, has come under pressure by trans activists for speaking about the deceased friend in the early days of President Trump's second administration, which is marked by executive orders empowering border security and opposing gender ideology.
"I don't really think there should be a general obligation for trans people to cover for each other in terms of crimes," Taylor responds.
Youngblut is scheduled for her first federal court appearance on Jan. 27.
Editor's Note: This report has been updated with additional reporting.