Ex-NJ police chief charged with hate crime for allegedly using racial slurs, comparing blacks to ISIS

The former police chief of a small New Jersey town has been charged with a hate crime after he was accused of using racial slurs and assaulting a suspect.

Frank Nucera Jr. was arrested Wednesday and charged with a hate crime and violating a suspect’s civil rights through excessive force, based on recordings taken secretly by another member of the police force, according to the complaint as reported by NBC News.

In the primary incident outlined in the complaint, Nucera allegedly grabbed an 18-year-old suspect by the head, slamming it into a metal doorjamb and hitting him in the head with his arm while apprehending the suspect and his girlfriend for not paying for their hotel room.

{mosads}Nucera served as chief of Bordentown, a 12,000-person community that is 76 percent white and 9 percent black, and retired in February after the investigation into his behavior began.

Other complaints allege Nucera’s repeated use of racial slurs and profanity, using police dogs to intimidate black people, using racial slurs to refer to black suspects and equating black people with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria terror group.

In one instance, Nucera reportedly said that “n—–s are like ISIS, they have no value.”

Acting U.S. Attorney in New Jersey William Fitzpatrick said in a statement that Nucera “dishonored” the force with his behavior, according to NBC.

“The nobility of police officers is rooted in their selfless commitment to protect our communities and their pledge to honor our constitutional values,” Fitzpatrick said. “As chief of the Bordentown Township Police Department, the defendant dishonored the profession by doing neither.”

Nucera was released on unsecured $500,000 bond and ordered to give up all his guns. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.