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Guilty plea agreed upon after swastikas painted on home

Posted at 11:29 AM, Jan 01, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-01 11:29:33-05

CINCINNATI (AP) — A man accused of spray painting swastikas and the phrase "white power" on a biracial couple's Cincinnati home has agreed to plead guilty to a federal hate crime charge.

Prosecutors say 42-year-old Samuel Whitt broke into the home during the 2016 Thanksgiving holiday while the couple was out of town.

They say he had been renting the lower-level of the couple's home before being evicted.

Court documents show Whitt agreed late last month to plead guilty to criminal interference with the right to fair housing. No date has been set for him to formally plead guilty. His attorney, federal public defender Kevin Schad, declined comment.

Authorities say Whitt also poured cement down drains, ripped up carpet and splashed paint on the walls and appliances.