WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd December, 2022) A Mississippi man has pleaded guilty to committing a hate crime when he burned a cross in his front yard to intimidate a neighboring Black family, the US Justice Department said on Friday.
"Axel C. Cox, 24, of Gulfport, admitted to violating the Fair Housing Act when he used threatening and racially derogatory remarks toward his Black neighbors and burned a cross to intimidate them," the Justice Department said in a press release.
Cox admitted to gathering supplies from his residence, putting together a wooden cross in his front yard and propping it up so his Black neighbors could see it, the release said.
"Cox then doused the cross with motor oil and lit it on fire. Cox admitted that he burned the cross because of the victims' race and because they were occupying a home next to his," the release added.
Cox is scheduled to be sentenced on March 9 and faces serving up to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, according to the release.
