New Border Fear: Violence by a Rogue Militia
, by Jesse McKinley and Malia Wollan. The New York Times, June 26, 2009.
The three people arrested in the crime include the leader of Minutemen American Defense, a Washington State-based offshoot of the Minutemen movement, in which citizens roam the border looking for people crossing into the country illegally. Former members describe the group’s leader, Shawna Forde, 41, as having anti-immigrant sentiments that are extreme, at times frightening, even to people accustomed to hard-line views on border policing.

The authorities say that the three suspects were after money and drugs that they intended to use to finance vigilantism, and that members of the group may have been involved in at least one other home invasion, in California.
Woman held in 2 slayings an outcast, activists say: But Shawna Forde had high-level contacts in Minuteman movement despite extreme views, by Tim Steller. Arizona Daily Star, June 28, 2009.
In 2007, Forde applied to join Simcox's group, Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, and was allowed in on a probationary basis, said group Vice President Al Garza and founder Simcox, who left the group this year to run for the U.S. Senate. The group vetted her through interviews and a background check, members said.

"Within a few weeks, she was so assertive, wanting to take charge and wanting to be a spokesperson," Simcox said.

"She lasted less than six months. After that, she went and tried other groups," he said. "She thrust herself into the movement where no one else wanted her."

"It's a hodgepodge of folks"

The world she entered is a set of individuals and groups, many using the word "Minuteman" in their name, many harboring hostilities with each other. They share an interest in stopping illegal immigration.
A bad article by the NYT imo, the Star article has more detail. The Times headline seems sensationalistic at this point, we'll see where this goes.