White Supremacist Admits to Fatally Stabbing Homeless Black Man in N.Y.C., Cops Allege
A self-proclaimed white supremacist from Baltimore allegedly murdered a New York City homeless man this week in a racially targeted attack, police tell PEOPLE.
James Jackson allegedly told investigators he traveled from Maryland and was looking to harm black men when he encountered Timothy Caughman at around 11:15 p.m. Monday in Manhattan, a New York Police Department spokesperson confirms to PEOPLE.
Jackson then allegedly attacked Caughman with a large sword, stabbing him repeatedly.
Caughman, who was reportedly homeless, stumbled into a police department with stab wounds to his chest and back and died later at a hospital, according to a police statement obtained by PEOPLE.
Jackson turned himself in to police on Wednesday after his image was circulated in the media, the New York Times reports. Surveillance footage obtained by PEOPLE appears to show Jackson jogging through the streets with a sword on the night of the attack.
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“It is believed that [Jackson] was specifically intending to target male blacks,” the NYPD’s Assistant Chief William Aubry said at a news conference.
“It’s well over 10 years that he has been harboring these feelings of hate,” Aubry said.
Aubry added that Jackson allegedly chose New York because it is the “media capital of the world.”
Jackson “wanted to make a statement,” he said.
Standing on line waiting to vote I love america pic.twitter.com/jVAeLXtUAq
— timothy caughman (@timrock715) November 8, 2016
Jackson was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder, but police are looking to upgrade the count to first-degree by classifying it as a hate crime, according to the Times.
He has not been arraigned and has not yet entered a plea; it was unclear if he has retained an attorney.
Jackson allegedly traveled to the city by bus on Friday and stayed at a hotel over the weekend, ABC News reports.
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Police claim Jackson admitted to his crime after turning himself in and described himself as a white supremacist.
“He was very forthcoming with us,” Assistant Chief Aubry said. “He knew what he was doing when he was coming up here, and he relayed all of that information to us.”
Caughman lived in a homeless shelter on West 36th Street and was looking through garbage when Jackson allegedly attacked, the Times reports. Jackson allegedly exchanged words with the victim before stabbing him and then throwing the sword in the garbage and washing the blood off of himself in a restaurant bathroom.
Caughman’s Twitter account is full with photos of the smiling man meeting some of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
In fact, he described himself on the page as an “autograph collector in New York city.”
He wrote of his dreams of visiting California and snapped a photo of himself apparently preparing to vote in the 2016 election, writing, “Standing on line waiting to vote I love america.”
