Florida

Man Pleads Guilty to Hate Crime for Threatening Miami Gardens Mosque

A Florida man has pleaded guilty to a hate crime for leaving a voicemail at a mosque that threatened to shoot people there.

The Miami U.S. Attorney's Office said in a news release Thursday that 35-year-old Gerald Sloane Wallace admitted at a plea hearing that he made the threat against the Islamic Center of Greater Miami in a Feb. 19 phone call.

Court documents say the message used profanity against Islam, the prophet Muhammad and the Quran and threatened to "go down to your center" and shoot people.

Wallace pleaded guilty to one count of obstructing the free exercise of religious beliefs, which carries a maximum 20-year prison term. Wallace will be sentenced in January.

Prosecutors previously said Wallace admitted leaving similar threatening messages at other mosques.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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