Crime & Safety
Former Mercer Marine Who Threatened To Kill White People Sentenced To 15 Month: Feds
Joshua Cobb told authorities he considered possible targets including a gym and a grocery store in Robbinsville.
MERCER COUNTY, NJ – A former Marine from Mercer County was sentenced to 15 months in prison for threatening to target white people in a shooting, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba said.
Joshua Cobb, 24, of Trenton, had previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert Kirsch in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with transmitting a threat in interstate commerce.
According to documents on Dec. 17, 2022, Cobb used a social media to post a message, saying he wanted to cause “mayhem on the white community.”
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Here is what he said:
“I want to cause mayhem on the white community. The reason i specifically want to target white people is because as a black male, they will NEVER understand my struggles. Same way I will never understand their struggles, but I don't care to. I want to erase them. All of them really, but in this case as many as I possibly can.
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As of today I have officially began planning my attack. It is going to take place in 2023 in the state of New Jersey, I have not chosen a exact date but I am going to be sure it is close to an important holiday to their race. I have a location in mind already which I have frequented for the past year and I am certain nobody there is armed to be able to stop me from spraying them to the ground. I have already acquired 2 of the 4 firearms I plan to use for my attack, and I also know my entry and exit points already after the mayhem…
White people are going to feel my pain in 2023. I will be certain I send as many as I possible can to the deepest pits of hell. I am going to wipe those ugly smiles completely off their faces. I dream of a day of pure evil on them. I plan to allow every evil spirit to work entirely through me and kill as many as i can. Some will get extra rounds through their head.
And you guys can think I'm a troll all you want. Just pay close attention the news, you will see my aftermath. And I will be sure I kill myself after I finish my terrorism.
White men and women in New Jersey, get ready. You are going to feel my pain very fucking soon. I put that on my life. From here on out I don't want to talk, my rounds are going to, after they exit the back of all your heads. Get ready New Jersey. The devil is coming.”
Cobb joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 2023 and began basic training in June 2023. He was stationed in California until his discharge in May 2024 when the U.S. Marine Corps learned about this case from law enforcement, Habba said.
Cobb admitted to writing the social media post and that he understood that the message would be threatening towards certain individuals.
Cobb also provided detailed information to law enforcement on locations he had considered as possible targets for his attack, including a gym and an Aldi grocery store in Robbinsville. Cobb also discussed his access to guns and idolization of other mass shooters, authorities said.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Kirsch sentenced Cobb to 3 years of supervised release.
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