A Maine man admitted to recording what federal authorities called a “vile” and “racist” voice message in which he threatened to kill his Black neighbors.
Court documents state that Charles Allen Barnes, 46, used Facebook Messenger to record a “racial-slur-laden voice message” in August 2022 in which he graphically and violently described how he wanted to kill his neighbor, a 32-year-old Black woman. He reportedly recorded the message the day after he and the neighbor got into a heated argument.
Federal investigators said the voice note was not only laced with threats and derogatory references to the woman’s race, but Barnes even recorded himself saying that he would wait outside her apartment and kill the next person who emerged from it, according to the Department of Justice.
Barnes said in the recording that he was “waiting for someone to step outside and the first one who does is gonna die…I don’t care if it’s her kid, or her, or her boyfriend. I don’t care…I’m killing me a n—er,” according to court documents.
Barnes sent the note to someone he knew was a close personal friend of the neighbor he threatened in his message. That person then forwarded the recording to the woman.
She called the Lewiston Police Department and Barnes was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor. His case was bumped up in April 2023 when the Office of the Maine Attorney General filed a civil rights complaint against him.
Federal authorities eventually charged Barnes with one count of threatening communications in interstate commerce for the recording. He pleaded guilty and faces up to five years in prison. If the judge determines that Barnes intentionally selected his neighbor because of her race, a sentencing enhancement will be applied.
“Charles Barnes thought that hiding behind a social media account would shield him from the consequences of terrorizing his neighbors with vile, racist death threats, but he was wrong,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Racially-motivated death threats and acts of violence are unacceptable in our society today. The Justice Department will continue to thoroughly investigate and vigorously prosecute anyone who carries out threats or acts of bias-motivated violence in our country.”
“Barnes’ conduct is not representative of how we treat our neighbors in Maine. Protecting civil rights is one of our highest priorities,” U.S. Attorney Darcie N. McElwee for the District of Maine said.
