Robert Jay Mathews

Robert Jay Mathews (January 16, 1953 – December 8, 1984) was an American neo-Nazi activist and the leader of The Order, an American white supremacist militant group. He was burned alive during a shootout with approximately 75 federal law enforcement agents who surrounded his house on Whidbey Island, near Freeland, Washington. Mathews was characterized in the 1999 television film Brotherhood of Murder. Life and activities Early years Robert Mathews was born in Marfa, Texas on January 16, 1953, the youngest of three sons born to Johnny and Una Mathews. His father, of Scottish descent, was mayor of the town, and the President of the Chamber of Commerce, as well as a businessman and leader for the local Methodist church. His mother was the town's Cub Scout den mother.