BAYPORT, N.Y. (1010 WINS) — A Long Island man was charged Monday after he allegedly sent hateful and violent letters to the LGBTQ+ community and businesses, including one threatening to target the 2021 NYC Pride March with "firepower" and explosives to make the 2016 Orlando Pulse nightclub mass shooting "look like a cakewalk," federal prosecutors said.
Robert Fehring, 74, has allegedly sent threatening letters to LGBTQ+ affiliated individuals, organizations and businesses since at least 2013, including threatening the use of firearms and explosives, the criminal complaint said.
“As alleged, the defendant's hate-filled invective and threats of violence directed at members of the LGBTQ+ community have no place in our society and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," said United States Attorney Breon Peace.
In a Nov. 18 search warrant conducted at Fehring's Bayport home by the FBI’s Civil Rights Squad and the New York Joint Terrorism Task, investigators found pictures from a 2021 Pride event in East Meadow, New York, along with two loaded shotguns, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, two stun guns and a stamped envelope addressed to an LGBTQ+ affiliated attorney containing the remains of a dead bird.
In another mailer, Fehring is alleged to have threatened the organizer of a June 2021 Pride event in East Meadow, writing: "[We] were right there you…FREAK!!! They couldn’t get a shot off at you, slithering around the back stage area like a snake. Too many cops. Very disappointed. But your time has come. ... They are out to KILL you….and your boyfriend. You are being watched. No matter how long it takes, you will be taken out…. high-powered bullet…. bomb….knife…. whatever it takes."
The FBI urged anyone that has received or knows someone who has received a similar threat to report it by calling 1-800-CALLFBI.
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