By WBFO News
Buffalo, NY – A South Buffalo man faces federal hate crime charges in connection with a cross burning on a lawn early Monday morning.
Police say 40-year-old Donald Napierala allegedly hammered the cross into the ground and set it on fire in front of the home on South Park Avenue. Resident Kelly Kohr says she has no idea why this took place.
Police say Napierala may have been seeking revenge. Kohr's boyfriend, Mario Echevarria, allegedly punched him during a Fourth of July party.
Napierala, who has also been characterized as a white supremacist, also faces charges of arson, criminal mischief, and reckless endangerment.