ATLANTA – A North Georgia man is in jail, charged with making racial threats towards Jewish and Black folks, in line with federal prosecutors.
What we all know:
Christopher Robertson, 42, of Fairburn, was arrested Friday after a standoff with FBI brokers, in line with the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace for the Northern District of Georgia. He made his preliminary court docket look Monday earlier than U.S. Justice of the Peace Decide Catherine M. Salinas.
Robertson is charged with speaking interstate threats.
The backstory:
Officers mentioned Robertson went to the Jewish Federation of Higher Atlanta on July 31 and was seen wandering in a safe parking zone. Employees alerted safety, who approached him. Robertson had pushed into the gated space with out permission, in line with officers.
Robertson advised safety he was “the official spokesperson for the white race” and mentioned he needed to talk with a high-ranking Jewish official. After being requested to go away, he drove to The Temple, a close-by synagogue in Midtown Atlanta.
There, Robertson spoke with two employees members and requested to talk with a rabbi. Prosecutors mentioned he made derogatory remarks about Jewish folks and ranted in regards to the decline of the white race. An Atlanta police officer was current on the time, and Robertson left after the feedback.
After the encounters, the FBI reviewed a number of social media accounts linked to Robertson and located antisemitic and threatening video content material.
Officers mentioned one YouTube video confirmed Robertson singing, “F*** the Jews, f*** you in case you Jewish, one shot, two shot, depart you within the sewage.” A Fb submit from July 28 allegedly confirmed Robertson holding a black pistol with a loaded journal. In that video, he spoke in regards to the “cultural genocide” of the white race and wrote within the caption: “I cannot tolerate cultural genocide get that understood — I’ll combat for it, I’ll die for it, I’ll kill for it.”
Because of the threats, legislation enforcement elevated patrols at roughly 80 Jewish amenities throughout the Atlanta space.
On July 31, shortly after Robertson posted on Fb that he needed to “chop it up with a rabbi,” officers mentioned he entered a Chabad Jewish heart in Peachtree Metropolis.
The Chabad rabbi referred to as 911 whereas employees members barricaded themselves in an workplace.
Robertson recorded the encounter and posted it on Fb, officers mentioned. Within the video, he referred to as himself the “official delegate of the white race” and advised the rabbi that Jewish folks had been on the “verge of extermination.”
He left the constructing when police arrived.
What we all know:
On Aug. 1, Robertson posted one other Fb video, this time threatening Black folks, saying: “We’ll kill the s*** out of you guys. . . . We’ll f***ing homicide you.”
Officers mentioned he particularly focused Black people who “lash out brazenly on the white man.”
Later that day, a federal court docket issued a warrant for Robertson’s arrest on the interstate risk cost.
When FBI brokers tried to arrest him at his house, officers mentioned Robertson barricaded himself inside for a number of hours. He ultimately surrendered, and a firearm was recovered from the scene.
What’s subsequent:
Robertson will stay in jail till his subsequent court docket listening to, scheduled for Thursday.
What they’re saying:
Officers addressed the arrest after Robertson appeared in court docket on Monday.
“The allegations towards Robertson, which embrace menacing visits to Jewish amenities and vile on-line threats towards Jews and Blacks, are of nice concern,” mentioned United States Lawyer Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Defending the group from hate-fueled violence is a foundational a part of the Division of Justice’s mission, and we are going to aggressively prosecute criminals who abuse the web to terrorize and intimidate others.”
“Mr. Robertson’s alleged actions function a disturbing reminder of the terrifying hatred our Jewish communities encounter merely due to their beliefs,” mentioned Particular Agent in Cost of FBI Atlanta Paul Brown. “The FBI will proceed to work diligently with our legislation enforcement and group companions to research any particular person who threatens the security of our residents.”
The Supply: Data on this article got here from the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace for the Northern District of Georgia.
