A New Jersey police officer with a history of racial discrimination was charged with a federal hate crime, marking the first time in nearly a decade that a law enforcement agent has been criminally indicted for such a crime.
Timothy Stroye, 18, and a female friend were swimming at a Ramada Inn on September 1, 2016, when a manager alleged the two were benefiting from the hotel's pool without having paid for a room, per CNN. The manager phoned authorities, and Chief Frank Nucera Jr., 61, arrived at the scene. After an exchange of words, a physical confrontation ensued between him and Stroye.
Stroye was pepper sprayed and detained. Following his arrest, the young teen recalled his head being slammed into a metal door frame. While speaking with paramedics, Stroye suspected he suffered from a concussion.
Blavity previously wrote that Nucera was arrested and charged with a hate crime earlier this year, but new details about his malpractice are now coming to light.
According to a September story by NJ.com, Nucera had previously been investigated by the FBI for a series of racist behavior, including a habit of using "n****r" to describe Black people. A recording from the U.S. Attorney's Office notes Nucera referring to Stroye and his friend as people who have no business congregating in Bordertown.
"These f**king people should stay the f**k out of Bordertown," Nucera said in the recording.
Records of Nucera's racist behavior date back to 2014. After arresting a Black man for vandalizing a patrol officer's car, a recording taken by a fellow officer showed Nucera comparing members of the Black community to terrorist organization ISIS.
"I wish that n****r would come back from Trenton and give me a reason to put my hands on him," Nucera said. "I'm tired of 'em. These n****rs are like ISIS, they have no value. They should line them all up and mow 'em down. I'd like to be on the firing squad, I could do it."
Another incident reported by NJ.com alleged that Nucera instructed fellow officers to attend high school basketball games in certain neighborhoods with police dogs, as well as park their cars by the entrance to scare Black attendees from entering.
The Trentonian reports Nucera retired from his post as chief at the beginning of 2017 when he caught word a federal investigation had opened against him. In addition to federal hate crime charges, Nucera has also been charged with lying to the FBI about the details that happened during Stroye's arrest. Nucera has pleaded not guilty to the hate crime accusations and plans to dispute the charges.
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