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Federal prosecutors revealed on Friday that the Navy had conducted its own internal investigation into Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, which had exposed numerous incidents in which he had promoted racist and sexist views. The Navy’s Criminal Investigation Service interviewed 44 of his colleagues and 34 of them said he had “extremist or radical views regarding the Jewish people, minorities and women.”
Hale-Cusanelli, 30, has been charged with seven counts, including obstructing congressional proceedings, civil unrest and disorderly conduct on Capitol Hill. He hasn’t pleaded yet.
His defense attorney declined to comment on new details of the Navy investigation on Sunday, but noted in court documents that Hale-Cusanelli maintains he is not a white supremacist.
Colleagues told Navy investigators that Hale-Cusanelli made almost daily comments against Jews, advocated killing disabled newborns and had “problems with women,” according to court documents. Prosecutors said they found racist memes on his phone, including one with the n-word, one comparing black people to animals and one insulting George Floyd.
A New Jersey federal magistrate ordered his release shortly after his arrest in January, but the Justice Department convinced a higher-ranking judge in Washington, DC, to block his release pending further review. A detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday.
A trail of hateful comments
Hale-Cusanelli worked as a security contractor at Earle Naval Weapons Base near Colts Neck, New Jersey. He held a “secret” security clearance in connection with his work, prosecutors said.
The Navy launched its own internal investigation after Hale-Cusanelli’s arrest in January, and nearly three dozen of his colleagues have shared stories of his allegedly racist and bigoted remarks. Prosecutors highlighted the Navy’s findings in a case pleading for his continued detention.
One of Hale-Cusanelli’s supervisors told investigators he would go to new colleagues and ask them, “You’re not Jewish, are you? A petty officer claimed to have heard him say: “Jews, women and blacks were at the foot of the totem pole.” Another base contractor said Hale-Cusanelli told them the Jewish people “are ruining everything and don’t belong here,” according to the file.
In a shocking revelation, prosecutors said Hale-Cusanelli came to the base last year sporting a distinctive mustache that resembled Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. One of his superiors told Navy investigators that they had confronted Hale-Cusanelli about his apparent “Hitler mustache”.
Another naval officer recalled that Hale-Cusanelli had said: “Hitler should have finished the job”.
Prosecutors also found evidence they said substantiated Hale-Cusanelli’s extremist views after he searched his phone. They found a video where he allegedly pushed the conspiracy theory that “the Jews did 9/11”, and another clip where he allegedly said, “I hate immigrants … intensely”.
On the day of the Capitol uprising, prosecutors said Hale-Cusanelli recorded video of himself shouting obscene vulgarity at a policewoman protecting the building.
Defense lawyer pushes back
His attorney, Jonathan Zucker, told the court that Hale-Cusanelli was not a violent man and could be returned to safety in the custody of his close associates in New Jersey.
“Mr. Hale-Cusanelli is charged with crimes resulting from his entry and stay on Capitol Hill, primarily trespass-like offenses,” Zucker wrote in a court record. “He is not charged with crimes of violence or destruction. He has never assaulted or threatened anyone.”
In an interview with FBI agents, Hale-Cusanelli denied being a Nazi sympathizer or having white supremacist views, according to defense documents. His lawyer acknowledged that his client’s social media posts were “controversial,” but said they focused primarily on local politics.
One of Hale-Cusanelli’s supervisors at the naval base where he worked submitted a letter defending Hale-Cusanelli and attacking the press. He refuted claims that Hale-Cusanelli is a white supremacist by noting that “he frequently buys breakfast” for a black colleague.
“I was appalled at the way he was slandered in the press as a ‘white supremacist’,” Sgt. John Getz wrote to the judge. “I never knew him like that.”
Getz said he was “proud to have someone like (Hale-Cusanelli) serve under me.” (Since his arrest, Hale-Cusanelli has been expelled from the naval base where he worked with Getz.)
But prosecutors told the judge that the glowing comment “directly contradicts” what Getz told Navy investigators. Getz told the Navy that Hale-Cusanelli was a Holocaust denier who made racist remarks in a “joking but not” manner, and that he confronted Hale-Cusanelli about his behavior.
When FBI agents questioned Getz about the discrepancy, he said he was not personally offended by Hale-Cusanelli’s conduct and wanted to “speak positively” about him to the judge.
Hale-Cusanelli was in the Army Reserve at the time of the Capitol siege, but has since been removed from office, court documents show. The Pentagon has said he has been a reservist since 2009.
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