Supervisor Kevin Crye responds after arrest of Shasta man on felony gun charges

Michael Jay Kamfolt, a supporter of Supervisor Kevin Crye and critic of some of Shasta County’s local activists, was arrested Tuesday on three misdemeanor and four felony firearm-related charges.

Those charges allege the illegal possession of an assault weapon, machine gun and short-barreled shotgun or rifle, as well as the possession of a firearm with an altered or defaced identifying marker and without a valid state or federal serial number. Additional charges include allegations that he illegally manufactured or assembled a firearm, that he illegally converted a firearm into a machine gun or offered to sell an illegal machine gun, and that he knowingly received stolen property.

Yesterday Crye shared a Facebook live video saying the man who was arrested Tuesday was a friend and supporter and emphasizing that he had no prior knowledge of the circumstances that may have led to the arrest.

According to county records available so far, Kamfolt is not facing federal charges. Some of his alleged offenses — such as owning a machine gun — are only illegal in certain states such as California, while other allegations, like obliterating an identifying marker on a firearm, also violate federal gun laws. 

Shasta County’s in-custody reporting documentation shows that 40-year-old Kamfolt was apprehended by the California Highway Patrol at a property registered under his name in Anderson, then booked into the Shasta County jail midday. As of yesterday morning he was being held on bail of $50,000. He was removed from Shasta County’s in-custody database late yesterday, indicating that bail was likely posted.

A review of Shasta County court records shows no history of criminal convictions.

Kamfolt’s political participation 

In November of 2024, the day before the presidential election, Kamfolt visited the county election office with Supervisor Crye who said he’d just met Kamfolt that day. Speaking to a reporter, Kamfolt expressed his support for Crye’s work in the community and his interest in the importance of this particular election. He said he wanted to observe for himself that it was being facilitated correctly. At the time, former Registrar of Voters Tom Toller was running the election office. 

A few days later, Kamfolt made an appearance at a county board meeting alongside members of the local Cottonwood Militia. The group showed up after community member Jenny O’Connell-Nowain was arrested for allegedly disrupting the meeting. She was protesting statements by Supervisor Patrick Jones about another election official, former Assistant Registrar of Voters Joanna Francescut. Earlier this month, O’Connell-Nowain was found guilty of disrupting that meeting by a Shasta County jury.

In May of 2025, Shasta Scout spoke with Kamfolt again at a demonstration staged outside of Crye’s personal business. The protest was held in reaction to a decision from Crye and two other county supervisors to appoint Clint Curtis as the county’s top election official after the early resignation of Toller for medical reasons. At the time, Kamfolt described himself as a “good friend” to Crye and willing to do “anything to help him out.”

The video Crye posted yesterday addressed the arrest without referring to Kamfolt by name, calling him a “supporter” and “a friend of mine.” Crye said he knew nothing about the issues Kamfolt may have been facing and made note of the man’s wife and children, urging the public not to rush to judgement, and adding “remember we are innocent until proven guilty.” 

Kamfolt is an avid user of X where he has reshared pro-Nazi, antisemitic and Islamophobic content, as well as numerous posts condemning anti-ICE protesters around the country.

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