Penske Truck Rental announced Sunday it has banned members of the White Nationalist group “Patriot Front” from renting its vehicles again after a viral video showed masked men fleeing from a protest in Missouri in one of its trademark trucks.
Videos widely circulated on social media on Saturday showed what appeared to be members of the LGBTQ community confronting Patriot Front members in downtown Springfield.
The masked men, carrying shields and dressed in nearly identical khaki pants and blue shirts, were seen retreating and piling into the back of a yellow Penske rental truck before being driven away.
In a statement released Sunday afternoon, Penske said the group’s actions violated its rental agreement and would not be tolerated.
Penske said:
Penske Truck Rental is aware of an incident involving one of its vehicles yesterday in Springfield, Mo. This incident is unacceptable. We strongly condemn these individuals and their actions, which violate our rental agreement. Effective immediately, the individual(s) on the rental agreement are banned from future rentals.
It is not clear who rented the truck, but video footage and eyewitness
People filming the event caught the truck’s Department of Transportation and license plate numbers.
Springfield police have not said whether anyone was reported injured. The confrontation appeared to end without any arrests.
Patriot Front is widely recognized as a white nationalist hate group known for its plastic shields and its members wearing matching masks and clothing.
The organization frequently uses rented trucks, usually U-Haul trucks, to stage flash demonstrations in cities across the country.
Patriot Front did not immediately address Penske’s statement banning the member who rented the truck that was present in Springfield on Saturday.
The group did confirm in one social media post that it was in the city.