SEATTLE (AP) — A Neo-Nazi who helped lead a campaign to threaten journalists and Jewish activists in three states was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in federal prison — the longest prison term handed out to the participants in the conspiracy.
A jury convicted Kaleb Cole in September of five felony counts related to the delivery of Swastika-laden posters to journalists and employees of the Anti-Defamation League in Washington state, Arizona and Florida in early 2020. The posters warned: “You have been visited by your local Nazis,” “Your Actions have Consequences,” and “We are Watching.”
Seattle U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour handed down the sentence after hearing from victims who spoke of lingering fear and installing expensive home security systems in response to the threats. Miri Cypers, the regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, described picking up toys from her yard before fleeing to a hotel so that Cole and his followers would not know she had a daughter.
U.S. Attorney Nick Brown credited the victims for facing Cole in court: “Their courage has resulted in the federal prison sentence imposed today,” he said.