Hate-crime charges filed after women, children accosted in Belltown Police: Irate man told strangers to 'go back to Africa,' threatened to kill them

A Seattle man accused of shouting racist threats at a woman and her children on a downtown street now faces hate crime charges.

King County prosecutors contend Cody Shane Rockroads threatened to kill the woman and her three children as she walked on the morning of Dec. 17 in the 1800 block of Ninth Avenue. Rockroads, 23, is alleged to have told the woman, who is black, to go “back to Africa.”

“I’ll kill you and your kids, put ‘em in a box and send them back to Africa,” Rockroads said, according to charging papers. “You’re on my land!”

Rockroads then turned his attention to a woman who saw the initial incident, a Seattle police officer said in charging papers.

According to court papers, Rockroads threatened to kill that woman, who is also black, while making racist comments. He is also alleged to have told her to leave the country.

“You came here on your (expletive) boats,” Rockroads shouted at the woman, according to charging papers. “Go back on your (expletive) boats!”

Rockroads ultimately charged at the woman, who believed he was preparing to attack her, the police officer continued.

Charged earlier this month, Rockroads is currently jailed on $25,000 bail. He has been charged with malicious harassment under the state hate-crimes statute.

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Seattlepi.com reporter Levi Pulkkinen can be reached at levipulkkinen@seattlepi.com. Follow Levi on Twitter at twitter.com/levipulk.