CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. — A Virginia Tech sociology professor’s accusation that a group of white teenagers committed a racially motivated hate crime against him has been debunked by local police, who found the teens were simply clearing snow from their truck at a nearby house party.
Dr. Onwubiko Agozino filed a police report on Feb. 10 alleging that eight white minors targeted his Christiansburg home by blasting music containing racial slurs, hurling ice blocks, and shouting the N-word. Agozino, who teaches sociology at the university, told authorities the incident was a deliberate racial attack.
A local progressive activist group, New River Valley Indivisible, amplified the claims in a Feb. 11 Facebook post.
“This incident is not merely a case of disorderly conduct; it is a hate crime, and it is both illegal and profoundly immoral,” the group wrote. “The actions of these individuals represent a direct assault on the safety, dignity, and civil rights of a member of our community.”
The Christiansburg Police Department launched an investigation and reached a different conclusion within two days.
“There have been incorrect reports that this may have been a targeted incident toward a specific residence or person based on racial bias,” the department posted on Facebook on Feb. 12. “Our investigation has found no evidence of criminal intent or racial bias. At no time did any juveniles yell obscenities, or direct attention to any homes in the area while clearing the snow and ice.”
Officers determined the teens had been attending a house party on the same street and were dumping snow and ice out of their truck bed. The music was coming from the party, not directed at anyone.
Agozino disputed the findings.
“They investigated and identified the suspects,” the professor told Fox News Digital. “They claimed that they had no bad intent and the police concluded that there was no evidence of hate crime. I reminded the police that intent is only one element of crime because reckless or unreasonable behavior that is threatening to anyone is considered a breach of the law even if there is no intent to harm anyone.”
Police increased patrols around Agozino’s home following the incident. The professor then claimed the same truck returned and lingered near his mailbox for 20 minutes.
“I hope that the statement by the police that there is no evidence of a hate crime will not unwittingly embolden the suspects,” Agozino said.
Neither Agozino nor Virginia Tech responded to requests for comment from the New York Post.
The case follows a pattern of high-profile hate crime allegations that collapsed under scrutiny. In 2019, actor Jussie Smollett claimed two Trump supporters attacked him on a Chicago street in what turned out to be a staged hoax. Smollett was convicted of filing false police reports. In 2023, a Brigham Young University investigation found no evidence to support a black volleyball player’s claim that fans directed racial slurs at her during a match.
No charges have been filed against any of the teenagers.
