WOODSTOCK, Ohio —
In this blink-and-you’ll-miss-it, one-stoplight town, dozens of residents still fly “Trump 2020” and “Make America Great Again” flags.
A now-shuttered bar brought the FBI and other investigators to Woodstock, Ohio, about 40 miles northwest of Columbus, this month. Bedsheets and drapes cover the windows of the Jolly Roger Bar and Grill, except for a sliver where an “open” sign flickers in red, white and blue.
It is here, federal authorities allege, that Army veteran Jessica Watkins tended bar and recruited members for a local militia group she founded in 2019, according to her claims in social media posts. She affiliated it with the Oath Keepers, an extremist, militaristic group believed to have thousands of members nationally, authorities say.