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John Edgar Rust, a 26-year-old Virginia man, has been charged with making racist threats to kill African Americans at Howard University.
Rust, 26, of Alexandria, Virginia posted a 4chan chat thread using the wifi in a Panera Bread store on November 11 last year which said, “After all, it’s not murder if they’re black.” According to the Virginia Sex Offender Registry, Russ was convicted of sexual battery against a minor in 2012. Being banned from the Internet was part of his punishment, explaining his use of Panera’s wi-fi.
According to Department of Justice court documents, Rust of used the in-store WiFi of a restaurant in Alexandria to post statements online threatening to murder African-Americans attending historically-black Howard University.
Rust. was charged with “transmission in interstate commerce of a communication containing threats to injure the person of another.”
via NBC:
John Edgar Rust, 26, has been charged and faces a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison if he’s convicted, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said on Wednesday. Rust is a previously convicted felon, the office said. According to the Virginia sex offender registry, Rust was convicted of indecent liberties with child by a custodian and aggravated sexual battery in 2012.
On Nov. 11, 2015, the threat was posted on the website 4Chan, which allows users to post anonymously. The post spewed racial slurs and threatened to murder African Americans. According to an FBI affidavit, Rust concluded the threat by saying “After all, it’s not murder if they’re black.”
The affidavit states investigators traced the threat to a Panera restaurant in Alexandria. Agents then determined Rust’s computer was connected to the restaurant’s Wi-Fi network, and that he made a restaurant purchase that day on his credit card.
Rust appeared for a preliminary and detention hearing at the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia on Thursday, October 5.
If convicted, Rust, who will be sentenced by a federal court judge, faces up to five years in prison.
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