COLUMBIA, S.C. — Two South Carolina men were in court Tuesday, facing charges that “sparked fear for an entire community” by racially targeting robbery victims, federal officials said.
Charles Antonio Clippard, 27, and Michael Joseph Knox, 29, both of Columbia, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to federal hate crimes and other charges in connection with a string of racially motivated armed robberies targeting Hispanic victims, according to the Department of Justice.
According to court documents, beginning in January 2021 and continuing through February 2021, Clippard and Knox conspired to target victims identified as Mexican or Hispanic at public places, including gas stations and grocery stores…