Federal hate crime charges announced towards man accused of plotting racist capturing in Georgia

The person allegedly shot into two grocery shops in Jonesboro, Georgia.

19 Could 2022, 13:58

• 3 min learn

Hate crime charges have been announced towards a man accused of planning to fatally shoot customers and employees of two Jonesboro, Georgia, convenience shops.

Larry Edward Foxworth allegedly fired a gun repeatedly into two comfort shops at 2:30 a.m. on July 30, 2021. Each stores had been open for business.

The indictment alleges that Foxworth, who's white, was motivated to shoot into the shops due to the perceived race, color or national origin of the people inside the shops.

“No particular person must be afraid to shop or go to work in our community. Nor ought to folks have to worry that they might be violently attacked because of the color of their skin,” U.S. Lawyer Ryan Ok. Buchanan stated in an announcement.

Foxworth was charged with two counts of committing a federal hate crime and discharging a firearm to commit a violent crime. He has not yet entered a plea.

He is being charged under the Matthew Shepard-James Byrd Hate Crime Prevention Act, which makes it a federal crime to willfully cause bodily damage, or try to take action using a dangerous weapon because of the victim’s precise or perceived race, colour, faith or national origin.

Clayton County is a predominantly Black community, making up 72.8% of the population, in accordance with the U.S. Census Bureau.

The costs towards Foxworth come in the wake of the mass capturing at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store.

The 18-year-old suspect in Buffalo shot and killed 10 individuals, injuring three others, in what authorities have described as a racially motivated rampage.

“Hate-fueled violence has no place in a civilized society,” Assistant Attorney Normal Kristen Clarke of the Justice Division’s Civil Rights Division stated. “Fortunately nobody was injured by the conduct alleged on this case, however the Justice Division is committed to using all the tools in our regulation enforcement arsenal to prosecute allegations of hate crimes.”

U.S. Assistant Lawyer Normal for the Civil Rights Division Kristen Clarke speaks throughout a news conference at the Division of Justice, Aug. 5, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

That is the primary time in about eight years that hate crime expenses have been filed in the Northern District of Georgia, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Workplace told ABC Information.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Clayton County Police Division.

ABC News' Luke Barr contributed to this report.