NJ Man Pleads Guilty to Threatening Mass Shooting Against White Community

Defendant admitted to planning an attack and idolizing other mass shooters, authorities say.

A Mercer County resident admitted in federal court to posting violent threats online against members of the white community, Acting U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna announced. Joshua Cobb, 24, of Trenton pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert Kirsch in Trenton to one count of transmitting a threat in interstate commerce. Sentencing is set for May 20, 2025.

Alleged Online Threats and Attack Plans

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court, Cobb used a social media platform on December 17, 2022, to write multiple posts threatening harm to white individuals:

“I want to cause mayhem on the white community. The reason i specifically want to target white people is because as a black male, they will NEVER understand my struggles. Same way I will never understand their struggles, but I don't care to. I want to erase them. All of them really, but in this case as many as I possibly can.

"As of today I have officially began planning my attack. It is going to take place in 2023 in the state of New Jersey, I have not chosen a exact date but I am going to be sure it is close to an important holiday to their race. I have a location in mind already which I have frequented for the past year and I am certain nobody there is armed to be able to stop me from spraying them to the ground. I have already acquired 2 of the 4 firearms I plan to use for my attack, and I also know my entry and exit points already after the mayhem…

"White people are going to feel my pain in 2023. I will be certain I send as many as I possible can to the deepest pits of hell. I am going to wipe those ugly smiles completely off their faces. I dream of a day of pure evil on them. I plan to allow every evil spirit to work entirely through me and kill as many as i can. Some will get extra rounds through their head.

"And you guys can think I'm a troll all you want. Just pay close attention the news, you will see my aftermath. And I will be sure I kill myself after I finish my terrorism.

"White men and women in New Jersey, get ready. You are going to feel my pain very fucking soon. I put that on my life. From here on out I don't want to talk, my rounds are going to, after they exit the back of all your heads. Get ready New Jersey. The devil is coming.”

Cobb admitted he fully understood these messages would be threatening. He also “previously provided detailed information to law enforcement on locations he had considered as possible targets for his attack, including a gym and a grocery store in Robbinsville, New Jersey.” Authorities say he discussed access to guns and expressed admiration for mass shooters.

Potential Penalties

Transmitting a threat in interstate commerce carries a statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing will take place in federal court in Trenton, where Judge Kirsch will determine Cobb’s final sentence.

Investigation and Prosecution

Acting U.S. Attorney Khanna credited special agents of the FBI and task force officers of the Joint Terrorism Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian J. Driscoll, with the investigation. He also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, the FBI Field Office in Los Angeles, the Hamilton Police Department, the Robbinsville Police Department, and the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office for their collaboration.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Vera Varshavsky of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s National Security Unit, with assistance from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division.

As with all criminal cases, Cobb is presumed innocent unless and until the court imposes a final judgment at sentencing. No further details on sentencing recommendations or plea agreements have been released.