A former Georgia sheriff’s deputy said he wanted to charge Black people with felonies to prevent them from voting, court documents show

• Cody Griggers, 28, pleaded guilty on Monday to one count of possession of an unregistered firearm.
• He told a group text he wanted to falsely charge Black people with felonies, court filings show.
• He was fired from his job as a Georgia sheriff’s deputy, the Raleigh News & Observer reported.
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A former Georgia deputy said he had plans to charge Black Georgians with felonies to prevent them from voting, according to court filings in the Middle District of Georgia.

Cody Griggers, 28, pleaded guilty on Monday to one count of possession of an unregistered firearm. He was fired from his position in November 2020 after FBI investigators messaged the Wilkinson County sheriff about the investigation into Griggers, the Raleigh News & Observer reported.

The FBI first became aware of Griggers from a separate federal case in California regarding an associate of his, Grey Zamudio. They started investigated Zamudio after receiving a tip about Facebook posts that said “it’s up to vigilantie militia to crush the liberal terrorists.” Investigators seized Zamudio’s cell phone from a search warrant where they discovered that he and Griggers regularly communicated in a group text known as “Shadow Moses.”

According to the filing, Griggers wrote extensively in the group about purchasing illegal weapons and explosives and “expressed viewpoints consistent with white racially motivated extremists,” including positive references to the Holocaust.

In August 2019, Griggers wrote in the group that he used excessive force on a theft suspect and said the beating was “sweet stress relief.”

“I beat the s— out of a n—–t on Saturday,” he wrote. “Sherrif’s dept said it look like he fell.”

Griggers also said he planned to charge Black Georgians with felonies to prevent them from voting, the court documents show.

“It’s a sign of beautiful things to come,” Griggers said. “Also I’m going to charge them with whatever felonies I can to take away their ability to vote.”

In Georgia, felons are not allowed to vote until completing the terms of parole, incarceration, probation, and all fines are paid.

Two months after detailing his plan to strip Black Georgians from being able to vote, Griggers reiterated his desire to disenfranchise voters in the event of a second Civil War, the filing shows.

“I think it might be best to fight the next generation,” Griggers wrote in the group text. “Castrate, kill, remove voting rights, and also educate the population. Basically kill and f— the enemy out of existence.”

After executing a search warrant at Griggers’ home in November 2020, investigators said they discovered an unregistered rifle with an illegally shortened barrel. Griggers’ work vehicle was searched as well, where officers discovered several additional weapons including a machine gun with an “obliterated serial number” that was not issued to him by the Wilkinson County Sheriffs Office. In total, investigators found 11 illegal firearms.

“This former law enforcement officer knew that he was breaking the law when he chose to possess a cache of unregistered weapons, silencers, and a machinegun, keeping many of them in his duty vehicle, said Acting US Attorney Peter Leary in a DOJ release. “Coupled with his violent racially motivated extreme statements, the defendant has lost the privilege permanently of wearing the blue.”

Griggers’ sentencing is set for July 6. He faces up to 10 years in prison for the firearm charge followed by three years of supervised release and a maximum fine of $250,000.