The occupation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge that began on Jan. 2 came to an end after 41 days.

At approximately 9:40 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 11, the FBI brought three of the remaining Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupiers into custody without incident. At approximately 11 a.m., agents brought the fourth into custody without incident.

Those taken into custody on Feb. 11 were Sean Larry Anderson, 47, of Riggins, Idaho; Sandra Lynn Anderson, 48, of Riggins, Idaho; Jeff Wayne Banta, 46, of Yerington, Nev.; and David Lee Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio.

No one was injured, and no shots were fired. Feb. 11 marked day 41 of the occupation of the refuge.

Agents arrested the remaining four occupiers as they walked out of the refuge to the FBI checkpoint. Those arrested were to face arraignment before a U.S. magistrate judge in Portland on Friday, Feb. 12

At times, there were dozens of highly armed militants occupying, visiting and supplying the refuge. On Wednesday, Feb. 3, a federal grand jury indicted 16 people in connection with the occupation of the refuge.

Each subject faces one federal felony count of conspiracy to impede officers of the United States from discharging their official duties through the use of force, intimidation, or threats, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 372.

All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

“The occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge has been a long and traumatic episode for the citizens of Harney County and the members of the Burns Paiute Tribe. It is a time for healing, reconciliation amongst neighbors and friends, and allowing for life to get back to normal. I want to thank our neighbors in Eastern Oregon for their patience, resolve, and their kind and welcoming spirit to the many members of federal, county, state, local, and tribal law enforcement who have worked tirelessly to bring this illegal occupation to a conclusion. The fine work of so many dedicated public servants in a difficult endeavor cannot be understated. I am very proud of them all,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney, District of Oregon.

“Much work is left to assess the crime scene and damage to the refuge and tribal artifacts. We are committed to seeing the job done and to pursue justice for the crimes committed during the illegal occupation.”

A press conference was held on the afternoon of Feb. 11, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Greg Bretzing stated, “While the occupation is over, there is still quite a bit of work that needs to happen before the refuge can re-open to the public.”

Bretzing said the refuge would remain closed for several more weeks, and law enforcement will continue to man checkpoints at the edge of the refuge to maintain the security of the crime scene.

Bretzing said specially-trained agents were to secure the area, work through the property to locate and mitigate any explosive-related devices, and collect evidence from the scene.

The FBI will also be working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Burns Paiute Tribe to identify and document damage to the tribe’s artifacts and sacred burial grounds.

The final stages of the standoff began the night of Wednesday, Feb. 10, when the last four remaining occupants agreed to surrender to authorities the following morning.

Bretzing said when the last four holdouts left their camp, they were greeted by both Reverend Franklin Graham and Michele Fiore, a Nevada assemblywoman, who assisted in the negotiations.

Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward stated he is proud of the community, his friends and neighbors, and proud of the way the community stood up to the situation.

“I love this country, and a house divided against itself cannot stand.” Ward said. “I’ve seen division in our community, division in families, division amongst friends and neighbors, and divisions in our church congregations.

“There’s good that can come out of this. Friends and neighbors can get off social media and sit down over a cup of coffee and talk out their differences. We can work through these things. There’s been a lot of hurt, there’s been a lot of things said, but I don’t think there’s anything that’s been done that can’t be worked through. And if we can’t work through the differences that we found in our little community right here, how can we expect the rest of the nation to work through the division that we face?

“We need to communicate with our leaders, and our leaders need to communicate with us. I’ve seen people angry, I’ve seen people angry that they couldn’t even explain what they were angry about, and it’s torn our community apart. I see it tearing our country apart. But right now, we have the opportunity, as people of this great nation, the best nation on the face of the earth, to come out and work through our differences, and start getting things back together.”

Harney County Judge Steve Grasty noted that there are underlying issues that still need to be addressed.

“Management of federal lands is one that we’ve been working on for years and will continue to work on,” Grasty said. “Harney County has made some positive steps over the years, moving forward with collaborative processes, but we’ve got a long ways to go.

“In the meantime, the occupation and continued presence of militia groups in Harney County continues to raise division in the county with every community within this county. Calls for thousands of people to descend on Burns are very troubling. Continued militia presence in Harney County will only serve to delay any further or meaningful work on issues that truly need to be addressed. We’re grateful that the occupation ended peacefully. We look forward to the day when our community is ours once again.”

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Also on Feb. 11, United States Attorney for the District of Oregon Williams announced that nine additional individuals had been charged by federal indictment, and seven were arrested in relation to the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The defendants, listed below, were scheduled to make appearances in federal court, throughout six different states, Feb. 11-12. Two of the defendants remain at large. Each defendant is charged in the indictment with one felony count of conspiracy to impede officers of the United States from discharging their official duties through the use of force, intimidation, or threats.

The indictment charges the defendants below:

Blaine Cooper, 36, of Humboldt, Ariz.; Wesley Kjar, 32, of Utah; Corey Lequieu, 44, of Fallon, Nev.; Neil Wampler, 68, of Los Osos, Calif.; Jason Charles Blomgren, 41, of Murphy, N. C.; Darryl William Thorn, 31, of Marysville, Wash.; and Eric Lee Flores, 22, of Tuallip, Wash.

Cliven Bundy, 74, of Bunkerville Nev., was arrested as he got off a plane in Portland, and charged with conspiracy and assault on a federal officer in connection with a 2014 standoff on federal land near his Nevada ranch. Bundy is the father of Ammon and Ryan Bundy, who were involved with the initial occupation of the refuge. The two sons were arrested on Jan. 26.