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NAACP virtual meeting hacked with hate speech and pornographic images

Posted at 7:14 PM, Jun 04, 2020
and last updated 2020-06-04 23:24:14-04

WARNING: The content in this story is disturbing and does not reflect the views of FOX 4.

A virtual meeting held by NAACP Collier was hacked Thursday evening with hate speech and pornographic images.

The Zoom call was aimed to explore issues of social injustice.

But, FOX 4's Rochelle Alleyne was on the call and says unknown participants hacked it.

On a recording of the call, hackers can be heard using the 'n' word multiple times.

As organizers scrambled to stop the interruption, a voice can also be heard saying "George Floyd deserved to die".

Pornographic images were also seen on screen.

Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk was also on the call. His office says an investigation was immediately opened after the meeting.

CCSO says the sheriff also contacted the FBI. We're told they will work with U.S Attorney’s Office to determine if a federal crime has been committed.

"This was a highly offensive cyberhacking. People that commit cybercrimes could be anywhere in the world when they take control of online meetings, often making investigative efforts difficult," the Collier County Sheriff's Office tells FOX 4.

We also want to make sure that this offensive language and behavior doesn't overshadow what the meeting was about.

It was supposed to be a broader conversation about community policing. Fox 4's Rochelle Alleyne got a chance to ask the NAACP Collier president Vincent Keeys about that conversation earlier this week.

When asked how the country can create change when it comes to police interactions with the black community, this was Keeys' answer:

"We've asked for a citizens board to be established."

Right now in Collier county, both the sheriff's office and the Naples police department have citizen review boards. The Marco Island police department has a community relations department.

President Keeys says creating and becoming active on these boards are key to creating change. And one of the first he'd like to make is the review of use of force.

"We would like to be able to review officers record, their disciplinary actions and make sure that if they have that kind of record. That certain things take place," he said.

Keeys says those officers with that kind of record, should lose their certifications and be barred from working in law enforcement ever again.

And he also asks anyone who wants to create change to join groups like the NAACP.

"We encourage the entire community, the overall population, to join the NAACP to become active and involved," he said.