Woman sentenced on charges connected to hate crime hoax against Colorado Springs mayor
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – A woman convicted in a staged hate crime that targeted now-Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade during the city’s 2023 mayoral runoff election has been sentenced to just over a year in federal prison.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced Thursday that Ashley Blackcloud, 40, was sentenced to one year and a day in prison following her May 2025 conviction by a federal jury.
Prosecutors said Blackcloud played a central role in orchestrating a hoax designed to appear as a racially motivated attack against Mobolade, who was then a mayoral candidate, in an attempt to swing the upcoming election in his favor.
The case stems from an incident in April 2023, when, just days before the runoff election, media outlets received a video showing a burning cross placed in front of a campaign sign for Mobolade. The sign had also been defaced with a racial slur, written in red spray paint.
The hoax was uncovered when the Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) began gathering surveillance footage near the scene of the cross burning, which showed three people staging the crime between 2:30 and 3:30 a.m. A further investigation ultimately identified Blackcloud and co-defendant Derrick Bernard, "self-declared activists and social media personalities," as two of the culprits, the DA's office said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, after staging the cross burning, Blackcloud, Bernard and a third co-conspirator, Deanna West, used email and social media to publicize the alleged threat in the weeks leading up to the runoff election.
The three were initially indicted in November 2024 for maliciously conveying false information about a threat made by means of fire.
Following a week-long trial in May, both Blackcloud and Bernard were convicted of conspiring to threaten or convey false information about a threat. West previously pleaded guilty in the case.
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Evidence presented at the trial showed that ten days before the cross burning, Bernard had sent a message to Mobolade, in which he explained he was “mobilizing my squad in defense. Black ops style big brother,” before immediately texting Blackcloud, “I got a plan.”
Additional court documents revealed more messages sent between Mobolade and Bernard in the days before the alleged hoax, as well as a five-minute phone call just days after. However, Mobolade has denied any involvement and said in a previous statement to KRDO13 that his interaction with Bernard was solely as "a local media personality."
Bernard's sentencing is scheduled for March.
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