A former Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan is reportedly acting as a mentor to “very extreme” Irish anti-immigration activists.

Frank L Silva, who also goes by the name ‘De Silva’, has been a well-known figure within American white supremacist circles since the 1980s.

Originally, a member of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), he rose up through the ranks to become ‘Grand Dragon’ of its Los Angeles chapter.

Afterwards, he became involved in a group called ‘the Order’ a neo-Nazi group who, after a string of violent crimes, were infiltrated by the FBI.

According to The Irish Times, he is now acting as an online “mentor” to members of the Irish far-right.

“Silva was one of the founding members [of the Order] and one of the people arrested,” the paper’s crime and security correspondent Conor Gallagher told The Pat Kenny Show.

“He got a 40-year sentence of which he served about 13 years and was released in 1998.”

Since Silva’s release from prison, he has become a “prolific author”, writing histories that advance white supremacist ideology and also some “pretty terrible” poetry.

He is also a keen user of social media and hosts a regular podcast.

Mr Gallagher said Silva is now in contact with a group of “very extreme Irish activists”.

“To be clear, these aren’t just the people who oppose the building of a centre in a certain area,” he said.

“These are people who don’t want any immigrants in Ireland, who want mass deportations - basically white supremacists themselves - and would endorse violence towards those ends.

“They hold regular meetings on an app on Twitter.”

Advice

He said Silva often attends the Twitter meetings, where he has taken on a “mentor role” to Irish activists.

“I’ve got access to several recordings and transcripts of meetings and you can hear De Silva offering advice based on his own struggles with authorities in the States in the 1980s,” Mr Gallagher said.

“Offering praise and mentorship for protest tactics, telling people how they can get into the minds of Gardaí, telling people how they can go viral.

“One piece of advice was, if you’re going to confront a Garda, you need four or five other guys with you - otherwise you’re going to be overpowered.”

Mr Gallagher said Gardaí are “often playing catchup” on the issue of far-right activism and believes they would need a “massive increase in resources” to monitor it all.

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Main image: A Klu Klux Klan robe. Picture by: Alamy.com