Brooklyn, NY – In a move to combat hate crimes, Nicholas Welker, also known as ‘King ov Wrath,’ was sentenced to 44 months in prison for conspiring to make death threats against a Brooklyn-based journalist. The journalist had been reporting on Welker’s Neo-Nazi group, Feuerkrieg Division (FKD), an international racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist group.

Welker, 33, pleaded guilty in September 2023 to the charges. The death threats were posted online, including a photograph of the journalist with a gun aimed at his head and the words ‘Race Traitor’ over his eyes. The threat stated, ‘JOURNALIST F*** OFF! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.’

The threat listed the journalist and his employer by name and was posted to a public online forum. Two underage FKD members also tweeted the death threat directly at the journalist’s social media handle. Welker intended to frighten the journalist into dropping his reporting on the hate group.

FKD members share a common goal of challenging laws, social order, and the government via terrorism and other violent acts. The organization encourages attacks on racial minorities, the Jewish community, the LGBTQ+ community, the U.S. Government, journalists, and critical infrastructure. FKD has members in the United States and abroad.

United States Attorney Breon Peace praised the sentence, stating, ‘Welker tried to silence a journalist from reporting on his white supremacist group so that his fellow extremists could continue to commit violence against racial, ethnic, and religious minorities, and the LGBTQ+ community.’

The case was handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section, with Assistant United States Attorneys Ellen H. Sise and Andrew D. Reich leading the prosecution. Trial Attorney Jennifer Levy of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section also assisted with the case.

The investigation was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which consists of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the NYPD, and over 50 other federal, state, and local agencies. The Estonian Internal Security Service and Prosecutor’s Office also provided valuable support.

Nicholas Welker will serve 44 months in prison for conspiring to make death threats against a Brooklyn journalist. His sentence serves as a warning to those who attempt to silence journalists and commit hate crimes.