Rightwing extremist from Bayside busted buying illegal assault rifles

Federal court for the Eastern District of New York. Photo by Rob Abruzzese

By David Brand

A Bayside man whose Instagram account glorified anti-Semitic killings and called for “racial jolt war” was arraigned in Brooklyn federal court Wednesday after prosecutors say he tried to purchase illegal assault rifles with defaced serial numbers.

Joseph Miner, 29, was arrested with his neighbor, Daniel Jou, 40, Tuesday night at a hotel near LaGuardia Airport, where prosecutors say they attempted to purchase a cache of weapons, including the modified assault rifles, from an undercover officer posing as an arms dealer.

Miner, a former Cardozo High School and Queens College track star, maintained a hate-filled Instagram account under the name “Souljagoy” — a play on the name of rapper Soulja Boy and the Hebrew word goy, meaning “non-Jew” — in which he identified himself as a “Far Right Propagandist.” 

Instagram posts and messages entered into evidence allegedly show Miner giving the Nazi salute in a photo with the text “God I hate women jews and n------, holding a knife in a photo captioned “overthrowing [Jews] is our Christian duty,” celebrating the anti-Semitic attack in Monsey, NY and praising Hitler.

Miner and Jou appeared via video conference before Magistrate Judge Robert Levy.

Federal prosecutors and Miner’s defense attorney Benjamin Silverman agreed on a permanent order of detention during his initial appearance Wednesday afternoon.