A Mississippi Coast man burned a cross in his yard to intimidate Black neighbors, records say
A Mississippi man is being held without bond pending trial on charges accusing him of burning a cross in his front yard in a federal hate crimes case.
The cross burning was performed in an effort to intimidate and threaten his Black neighbors who were renting a home nearby, according to a federal indictment handed down in Gulfport.
Axel Charles Cox, a resident of Harrison County, waived his arraignment Friday on federal charges of intimidating and interfering by force and threat of force to interfere with fair housing rights, a civil rights violation that carries a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Cox could also face up to three years of post-release supervision if he is convicted.
A federal grand jury in Gulfport also indicted Cox on an additional charge of using fire in the commission of committing a felony crime, which carries s a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison that must be served consecutively to the sentence on the previous charge.
Cox, records say, committed the crimes on Dec. 3, 2020, in Harrison County, during which he allegedly made “threatening and racially derogatory remarks” and threatened them through the use of fire in the cross burning.
A grand jury found the evidence to indict him on the federal offenses on Sept. 22, with the records unsealed before his first court appearance Friday.
Judge Robert Myers ordered Cox held without bond pending trial on the court calendar beginning Nov. 7.
