An anti-Israel rabble-rouser admitted to torching nearly a dozen NYPD vehicles last summer at a court hearing packed with a crew of fervent supporters.
Jakhi McCray, 22, pleaded guilty at Brooklyn Federal Court on Wednesday as part of a plea deal for the June 12 arson of 10 squad cars and a trailer in a designated NYPD parking lot in Bushwick.
The Brooklyn activist calmly answered all of Judge Seth Eichenholtz’s questions and even flashed grins as roughly 15 of his supporters sat in the courtroom.
“On June 12th, I knowingly and willingly set fire to NYPD vehicles,” McCray told the courtroom.
The admitted vandalizer caused roughly $800,000 in damages after scaling the fence of the locked lot and going on a 30-minute arson attack, according to court papers.
An NYPD officer spotted him escaping the scene of the raging inferno through a hole in the fence, prosecutors said. He eventually turned himself in to the police on July 21.
Following his guilty plea Wednesday, McCray stepped out of the courthouse holding a flower bouquet and sporting a black mask alongside his crew of occasionally rowdy supporters.
A solidarity group for McCray, which has helped raise money for his “material needs” and offered him support through legal proceedings, wrote in a statement that his acceptance of a plea deal is not “an act of defeat” and does not mean he is “conceding to what the state says is true.”
“This decision was made out of love for his family, friends, comrades and for the revolutionary movements of which he is part of. Jakhi’s decision is a political calculation made under political conditions, by someone who has already shown enormous courage, to minimize the amount of time the federal government gets to take from him,” the statement said.
“To support Jakhi is also to continue struggling against the U.S. from wherever you are. Jakhi is not free until everyone is free. Free Jakhi, free them all, free the land!”
McCray faces a minimum of five years and a maximum of two decades behind bars for the stunt, as well as a fine and restitution amount to be determined by the court.
“The defendant’s actions were not only dangerous, but they were also a direct attack on public safety and the rule of law,” United States Attorney Nocella said in a statement.
“By deliberately setting fire to multiple police vehicles in the pre-dawn hours, the defendant put at risk the lives of first responders and residents asleep in their beds nearby, and ultimately, strained resources meant to protect the community,” Nocella said.
“Today’s guilty plea ensures accountability and sends a clear message that acts of violence and destruction against law enforcement will be met with serious consequences.”
