Attorney General John Formella and Portsmouth Police Chief Mark Newport will hold a news conference today, Jan. 17, at 3 p.m. in the Portsmouth City Council Chambers regarding their investigation into recent hate group activity in Portsmouth.

Mike Garrity, Formella’s spokesman, said the public can attend, but it is a press briefing so there will be no public comment period. Garrity declined to provide more details before the briefing.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, last summer, the neo-Nazi group the National Socialist Club placed flyers on some lawns in Portsmouth that included recruitment messages. The National Socialist Club had previously targeted the Seacoast Repertory Theatre because of its drag queen story hour.

On its website, the Anti-Defamation League said:

“The Nationalist Social Club (NSC) or 131 Crew (131 is alphanumeric code for ACA, Anti-Communist Action and Anti-Capitalist Action) is a neo-Nazi group with small, autonomous regional chapters around the country. They also claim chapters in France, Hungary and Germany.

“NSC-131 members consider themselves soldiers fighting a war against a hostile, Jewish-controlled system that is deliberately plotting the extinction of the white race. Their goal is to form an underground network of white men who are willing to fight against their perceived enemies through localized direct actions.”