A man in a small New York town has put up a Nazi flag outside his home in what he says is a protest about his wi-fi being “hacked” by a neighbor.
Although hundreds of local residents in Preble, in the Central region of upstate New York, have demanded the flag be removed, officials say it is on private property and therefore can remain, even though it overlooks a road.
Jody Fish told syracuse.com that the red flag featuring a swastika is “a distress call” because someone is hacking into his wireless network.
“It’s to get attention so I can tell people what’s going on and that someone is hacking me,” he said, and promised to take the flag down as soon as the hacking is halted.
Fish told Spectrum News on Monday that he is not a Nazi sympathizer.
“No, no. Basically, I’m just trying to call attention to — I’m a victim,” he said and added that the hacking has been going on for nine months, but when he reported it to local authorities they were unhelpful.
“I would love to take it down, it’s been a nightmare. No. Definitely not, I’m quite the other way. I’m quite Christian,” he said.
Fish did not explain where he got the flag from.
Preble Town Supervisor Jim Doring said he tried asking Fish to remove the flag, but he declined. Because the flag is on Fish’s private property, authorities are powerless to take it down, Doring noted.
Over 800 people have signed an online petition asking that town officials take it down.
The petition organizer wrote: “This goes beyond what is considered the owners ‘rights.’ Why this is still allowed and is somehow justifiable, is beyond me.”
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Fish said that he will attend a town hall meeting next week to talk with locals about the matter.
