- A man has been accused of threatening to shoot Black people at the Tops store in Buffalo where a mass shooting occurred.
- A 37-year-old man was arrested and charged with making interstate threats, officials announced.
- Ten Black people were fatally shot during a racist attack at a Tops store in Buffalo in May.
A Washington man has been accused of threatening to shoot Black people at a Tops grocery store in Buffalo, New York — months after a racist gunman targeted Black residents at the same shop, prosecutors said on Friday.
Joey David George, 37, was arrested on Thursday and charged in US District Court in Seattle with making interstate threats, US Attorney Nick Brown announced.
Prosecutors allege that George on Tuesday called a Tops supermarket in Buffalo — different from the one where the recent deadly mass shooting occurred — and asked an employee how many Black people were at the store, according to a criminal complaint.
"He said he would make the news if he shot and killed all of the Black people, including all of the women, children and babies," the court documents say.
The complaint says that the caller, who identified himself as "Peter," told the employee there was a chance that he was already in the store or nearby and asked if the worker had cleared out the building.
According to the court papers, the man told the worker that if he did not "see anyone" at the store, he would travel to the Tops store on Jefferson Avenue, where the racially-motivated May 14 massacre that left 10 Black people dead occurred.
The compliant says that during the interaction, the caller said he had assault rifles and other weapons and claimed he "was a really good shot and could pick off people from the parking lot."
The next day, the man called the Tops store again and ranted about a "race war," saying, "This is what happens in a blue state," according to the court documents.
Prosecutors said the caller attempted to block his number, but authorities traced the number back to George and determined that the call was made near George's Lynnwood, Washington, home.
"The Buffalo community is trying to heal from the horrific shooting at a Tops grocery store. I cannot imagine the type of fear such hate fueled threats engendered in those just trying to go about their daily lives," Brown said in a statement.
He added, "We cannot tolerate this kind of hate in our community and will not sit by while people seek to terrorize others across our country."
It was not immediately clear whether George had retained an attorney.
Prosecutors allege that George has made racial and violent threats to other businesses in California, Connecticut, and Washington over the last year.
In one case, George is accused of calling a restaurant in San Bruno, California, on May 12 and threatening to shoot Black and Hispanic patrons inside if the eatery did not close within 20 minutes, according to the criminal complaint.
According to the criminal complaint, police spoke to the caller by phone and he told authorities that he called the restaurant "because he wanted to attack Black people and strike fear into the Bay Area's Black community."