Wave Wire Services
RALEIGH, N.C. — A 26-year-old white man from North Carolina was sentenced to just two years in federal prison after making online threats of a mass shooting targeting a preschool and harming 20 Black children, according to media reports.
Zachary Charles Newell posted violent messages on YouTube aimed at Black children before authorities identified him as the account holder and arrested him, according to Atlanta Black Star. Prosecutors said he later admitted to posting the threats and pleaded guilty in court, ultimately receiving a two-year prison sentence.
Federal prosecutors said Newell was charged in September for communicating threats of mass violence after a series of disturbing online posts, the news outlet reported. He used YouTube to spread violent statements and had engaged with extremist content that targeted racial, ethnic, and religious groups.
On Aug. 27, 2025, Newell posted a comment during a wrestling-related discussion on YouTube. In the post, he threatened a Black preschool and referenced harming 20 Black babies, according to federal court records.
Four days later, Google flagged the content and reported it to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center. Investigators traced the post to Newell’s YouTube account, which used the handle “Commentators Hate Me/”
At sentencing, officials noted Newell could have faced up to five years in federal prison if the case had gone to trial.
