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Who is Edward Cagney Mathews? NJ man pelted with bottles after he called Black neighbor N-word

Hundreds of people gathered outside his house for protesting the incident. While Mathews was arrested he was pelted with bottles and garbage

A White man from Mount Laurel, New Jersey has been arrested after hundreds of people gathered outside his house for protesting. The outrage was in response to a recent viral video where the man was seen harassing his Black neighbor and hurling racist abuses, including the N-word at him. The incident happened on Friday, July 2, 2021. Edward Cagney Mathews spurted out his house address in a fit of anger during the incident, which prompted scores of protesters to throng his driveway and surround his house on Monday, July 5, 2021. 

The 45-year-old was criminally charged with bias intimidation and harassment after another local Black resident complained that she had been "continually harassed" by him. Mathews would face additional charges as the prosecutor's office reviewed extra footage that showed him spitting on the victim, according to Mount Laurel Police Spokesman Kyle Garner. In the past few months, there have been other such cases. Ex-cop John Motto screamed at a Black man to go to his 'cage'. San Francisco coffee shop owner Eileen Rinaldi in fact, fired her husband for using the N-word.

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Who is Edward Cagney Mathews?

Mathews had been harassing his Black neighbors for the past three years as per Marcus Sibley, president of the Southern Burlington NAACP. In fact, he revealed that police had also been notified of his behavior in the past. 

In the viral video, the Mount Laurel resident can be seen at the doorstep of the Black man and refusing to leave his property. He hurled the N-word at him several times, along with other abuses. He mocked the man's accent by saying, "This isn't Africa" while also implying that he is not aware of American laws. At one point, Mathews even leaned in close to the man, in an apparent bid to physically assault him. His neighbor told him to back off as he raised both of his hands in defense. 

Towards the latter part of the video, Mathews spotted himself being filmed and threatened the man to "come see me", before blurting out his home address. As a police officer arrived at the scene, Mathews yelled the N-word in front of him and cursed the officer as well. Despite being told repeatedly to "cut it out" and return home, he refused to leave the property at first. 

As soon as the video surfaced on social media later, infuriated protesters followed the address and flocked to Mathews' condo in hordes. More than a hundred people surrounded the Essex Place Condominiums development on July 5, voicing their protest against racism. They were undeterred even when the cops arrived. The crowds pelted plastic bottles, garbage, debris at Mathews as well as the police when he was being escorted into custody. 

While speaking to The Philadelphia Inquirer later, Edward Cagney Mathews apologized for his behavior, adding that he was drunk. “I certainly wasn’t expecting an encounter like that and certainly wasn’t expecting to disrespect anybody. Let me be clear: That is no excuse for what I said, but I lost my temper," he told the outlet.

According to NJ, Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina commended the victim's restraint during a press conference. "He showed incredible restraint with someone spewing awful, vile things in his face and assaulting him. He didn’t deserve that. None of the residents deserve that. No one should ever feel unsafe in their home," Coffina said.