‘Did You See It?’: New Jersey Firefighter Caught on Camera Tying Noose and Throwing It at Black Co-Worker Joins Unemployment Line

A New Jersey firefighter who was caught on surveillance footage at work tying a noose, then tossing it to his Black co-worker, is out of a job with his town’s fire department.

According to records obtained by NJ Advance Media, Walter Coffey was fired from his position with the Township of Bloomfield’s fire department. Those records reveal Coffey was terminated on Nov. 16, and the reason for his termination was listed under “other.”

In a Facebook post on Dec. 12, Mayor Jenny Mundell confirmed the news but did not specify Coffey by name.

“Though I am limited by New Jersey law regarding details of personnel matters, with reference to the matter of the Bloomfield Fire Department, I can now confirm that the firefighter involved in the November 2023 incident is no longer employed by the Township of Bloomfield,” Mundell wrote. “The situation was handled through the appropriate administrative process, which has now concluded.”

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Coffey was suspended without pay from his position for the last two years following a racist incident in November 2023 involving his colleague, Patrick Thomas.

In a $25 million lawsuit, Thomas, a Black firefighter with the Township of Bloomfield, alleged that Coffey made derogatory, racist references during a departmental training on rope and knot techniques. During that training, he approached Thomas and said, “Thomas, there is a noose upstairs on the table, did you see it?”

A week later, in the middle of a knot training session at the firehouse, the complaint states that Coffey tied a hangman’s noose, threw it toward Thomas while laughing, and said, “I want you to figure out what kind of knot this is.”

Surveillance footage obtained by WNBC caught the moments Coffey tied the noose, then tossed it toward Thomas in front of several of their colleagues.

Coffey was charged in December 2023 with bias intimidation. A judge allowed him to complete a pre-trial intervention program to answer for the charges, which he entered in January 2025, according to Montclair Local.

An internal investigation by the fire department into Coffey’s actions was paused when he was charged and resumed in May once his criminal proceedings concluded, Bloomfield Township Attorney Khalifah Shabazz wrote in a statement last month.

Coffey had been employed with the township since 2000.

Thomas’s suit also states that Coffey has used the N-word on numerous occasions in front of other Black firefighters, but never faced disciplinary action.

“Bloomfield will not tolerate racism in any form, and our community deserves a workplace and a local government that reflects those values,” Mundell told NJ Advance Media.

She continued: “I know how deeply this incident has affected many of our residents, and I want them to know that I hear their concerns. Addressing racism requires ongoing commitment, and my administration remains focused on building systems that promote safety, respect, and accountability for everyone who lives and works here.”