A Kansas City, Missouri, man has pleaded guilty Thursday to a federal hate crime charge years after he lured a gay teenager into the woods and shot him.
Malachi Robinson, who has been in custody since June 2019, will be sentenced on Dec. 15. He faces life in prison without parole for violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.
“This attempted murder is a reminder that hate crimes against the LGBTQI+ community are real and must be confronted,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke. “Violent acts targeting people based on their sexual orientation are heinous crimes that have no place in our country.”
The shooting occurred near the southeast branch of the Kansas City Public Library on May 29, 2019, according to BuzzFeed News. The victim, identified in court documents as “M.S.,” made innocuous sexual advances toward Robinson — who violently responded.
Robinson acknowledged in the plea agreement that the teenager asked if he could add Robinson as a friend on Facebook. The two chatted over Facebook Messenger, where M.S. inquired about Robinson’s sexual orientation and said they should meet in the library bathroom.
Robinson told M.S. that he wasn’t gay, but agreed to receive oral sex for $5 for and ominously suggested they meet outside. The teen had no idea that Robinson was emailing his girlfriend with screenshots of the Facebook conversation.
“He tryna set me up on sumn now, gonna unfriend me,” Robinson wrote. “Might shoot this boy if he try some gay shit.”
Robinson lured the teen into the woods of the nearby Swope Park. Despite the victim reneging and attempting to leave, Robinson pulled out a Taurus 9 mm pistol and shot him eight times. M.S. was struck three times in the chest, once in his left buttocks, thrice in his right arm, and once in his right hand. One of the teenager’s fingers was nearly severed.
The victim survived and was hospitalized for about two weeks, but continues to require treatment for his injuries.
“I shot a n***a,” Robinson wrote in a Facebook message later that week. “He was being gay af and following me like a mf.”
Robinson told his girlfriend and cousins about the attempted murder and justified it by stating the teen had done “gay ass shit.”
Robinson eventually googled “How to get away with murder in real life,” as well as “How to know if the police are looking for you.” That second query was answered rather directly when police officers arrested Robinson on June 3, 2019.
Robinson also faces charges at the state level, though a spokesman told KCUR in August 2021 that they would likely be dismissed in light of the federal charge.