Gazi Kodzo is the activist name of Augustus Cornelius Romain Jr., the Atlanta-based founder of the Black Hammer Organization who was convicted in federal court in September 2024 of conspiring to act as an unregistered agent of the Russian government and sentenced that December to five years of probation. In January 2025, Georgia prosecutors dropped a separate slate of felony charges against him that had included racketeering, kidnapping, and human trafficking. He is not incarcerated.
Who He Is
Romain was involved with the African People’s Socialist Party and its Uhuru Movement before being expelled in 2018.1Axios. Gazi Kodzo and Black Hammer The following year he founded the Black Hammer Organization in Atlanta and took the title “Commander in Chief.” The group described itself as anti-colonial and anti-capitalist, with a stated mission to “take the Land Back for all colonized people worldwide.”2ADL. Black Hammer Organization
After the George Floyd protests in the summer of 2020, Black Hammer went through what the Atlanta Journal-Constitution called a “meteoric rise,” claiming chapters from New York to Los Angeles and drawing hundreds of followers.3Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Radical Rise and Cultish Fall of the Black Hammers The group recruited near Georgia Tech and Georgia State and ran a kind of open-air church in an Atlanta park frequented by homeless people.4Yahoo News. Infamous Cult Leader Arrested, Dead Body Found
What Black Hammer Did
Beginning in 2021, the group’s rhetoric shifted sharply. Black Hammer accounts praised the January 6 Capitol insurrectionists as “Freedom Fighters,” promoted election conspiracy theories, and opposed COVID-19 vaccine mandates.2ADL. Black Hammer Organization Romain appeared on a show hosted by Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes and said he had attended a shooting range with Proud Boys members, though the Proud Boys denied any formal alliance.
The most widely noticed provocation was a months-long social media campaign in 2021 attacking Anne Frank. Black Hammer accounts labeled the Holocaust victim a “colonizer,” a “bleach demon,” and a “parasite,” arguing she benefited from colonialism by virtue of being white and European.5Forward. How Could Anyone Ever Hate Anne Frank One post staged a copy of Frank’s diary next to a campfire. In a February 2021 article, the group wrote: “Had Anne Frank lived, there is no doubt that she would have been among the millions of white jews who helped push Palestinian mothers into the sea… Fuck Anne Frank.”2ADL. Black Hammer Organization Reporting suggested the posts functioned as deliberate clickbait, since ordinary Black Hammer content drew minimal engagement while the Anne Frank tweets generated hundreds of interactions.
That same year the group announced “Hammer City,” a settlement in Colorado for “colonized people” with “no cops, no rent, no Coronavirus, and no white people.” Secretary-General Chase Robinette put a $10,000 down payment on a 40-acre lot near Norwood, about 25 miles west of Telluride, with a purchase price of roughly $100,000.6The Colorado Sun. Black Hammer Utopia in Norwood, Colorado The deal fell apart when Robinette missed the May 14 closing deadline. About two dozen members occupied the land anyway. On May 16, 2021, an armed confrontation broke out when a local resident, Randy Stephens, encountered three armed members who drew a handgun on him; Stephens responded by brandishing a shotgun. Sheriff’s deputies told the group it was trespassing the next day, and members left that evening. Black Hammer had raised more than $112,000 for the project.
The Colorado failure accelerated the group’s unraveling. In late July 2021, the New York chapter publicly accused Romain and Robinette of misusing funds while rank-and-file members went homeless.6The Colorado Sun. Black Hammer Utopia in Norwood, Colorado Most chapters went inactive. By 2022, the ADL estimated the Atlanta headquarters had no more than a dozen active members.2ADL. Black Hammer Organization
Abuse and Cult Allegations
Former members who spoke publicly described the organization as coercive and cult-like. A former chief of staff known as “Savvy” told Fox 5 Atlanta that Romain forced members to perform physical labor and assaulted them. She said she was once made to stand outside for five hours under guard to prevent her from leaving and ultimately pulled a knife on group members to escape.7Fox 5 Atlanta. Former Members of Extremist Group Speak Out After Deadly Standoff Other former members said they were starved and sleep-deprived and felt trapped once they joined. Members reportedly lived in communal “Black Hammer Houses” under armed security and strict rules imposed by Romain.3Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Radical Rise and Cultish Fall of the Black Hammers
A Fayetteville police investigator later testified that leadership used “sexual grooming” and imprisonment to force members into submission, and that homeless individuals were recruited and exploited.8Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Feds Investigating Black Hammer Party in Wide-Ranging Criminal Probe
The Fayetteville Standoff and Georgia Charges
On July 19, 2022, Fayetteville, Georgia police received a 911 call from inside a house at 220 Selwyn Court reporting that someone was being held against their will in a padlocked garage.9Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta Fringe Group Linked to Fayetteville Home at Center of Deadly Shooting After a multi-hour SWAT standoff, officers entered the home and found 18-year-old Amonte Ammons, identified on the group’s website as “Minister of Defense,” dead in an upstairs bathroom from what police said was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.10The Citizen. Criminal Warrants Charge Black Hammer Party Leader Black Hammer disputed that finding and claimed Ammons had been killed by police.11Macon Telegraph. Black Hammer Party Leader Arrested After SWAT Standoff
Romain, then 36, and 21-year-old Xavier H. Rushin were arrested. Criminal warrants stated that, under Romain’s direction, Ammons and Rushin had pointed guns at two men and forced them into the padlocked garage.10The Citizen. Criminal Warrants Charge Black Hammer Party Leader Romain was initially charged with 11 felony counts including aggravated sodomy, conspiracy to commit a felony, false imprisonment, kidnapping, aggravated assault, and criminal street gang activity.9Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta Fringe Group Linked to Fayetteville Home at Center of Deadly Shooting The counts later expanded to include racketeering and human trafficking. In January 2025, Georgia prosecutors dropped all of them.12Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Prosecutors Drop Charges Against Leader of Black Nationalist Group Published reporting has not identified a specific reason for the decision.
The Federal Russia Case
Separately, a federal grand jury indicted Romain in a broader prosecution alleging that Russia’s Federal Security Service used American activists to spread pro-Kremlin propaganda and interfere in U.S. politics. The case, United States v. Ionov, named seven defendants: Russian national Aleksandr Viktorovich Ionov, two alleged FSB officers (Aleksey Borisovich Sukhodolov and Yegor Sergeyevich Popov), and four Americans — Romain, African People’s Socialist Party founder Omali Yeshitela, Penny Hess, and Jesse Nevel.13U.S. Department of Justice. U.S. Citizens and Russian Intelligence Officers Charged With Conspiring to Use U.S. Citizens as Illegal Agents
Prosecutors alleged that between 2015 and 2022 Ionov acted as an FSB handler who recruited the American defendants to advance Russian foreign policy goals, sow racial division, and influence elections, including the 2017 mayoral race in St. Petersburg, Florida.14BBC. U.S. Activists Convicted on Charges Linked to Russian Influence Operation Trial evidence included WhatsApp and Facebook messages between Romain and Ionov coordinating protest activity. In one exchange, Romain asked Ionov, “Who we attacking next?” after a demonstration; in another, he addressed Ionov as “Comrade” and asked for money to post pro-Russian propaganda.15Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Leader of Atlanta-Based Radical Group Sentenced for Working With Russian Agent Ionov allegedly paid $3,000 to activists to protest at Meta’s headquarters after the company restricted pro-Russian posts following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.16RFE/RL. U.S. Activists Convicted on Charges Linked to Russian Political Influence Operation
Romain represented himself at trial, with attorney Mark O’Brien in an advisory role. O’Brien told reporters that Romain “never knew he was dealing with the Russian government.”17WLRN. Activists Charged With Pushing Russian Propaganda Go on Trial in Florida On September 12, 2024, a federal jury in Tampa convicted all four American defendants of conspiracy to act as unregistered agents of the Russian government. They were acquitted of the more serious charge of actually acting as foreign agents.18Courthouse News Service. Black Rights Activists Convicted of Conspiracy, Not Guilty of Acting as Russian Agents
On December 9, 2024, U.S. District Judge William F. Jung sentenced Romain to five years of probation with conditions requiring mental health treatment and random drug screenings.15Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Leader of Atlanta-Based Radical Group Sentenced for Working With Russian Agent No prison time was imposed. His three co-defendants received three years of probation and 300 hours of community service each the following week, with Judge Jung characterizing their conduct as protected political speech. The defendants said they would appeal.19St. Louis Public Radio. St. Louis Activists Avoid Prison in Russia Conspiracy Trial
Where Things Stand Now
With the Georgia charges dismissed and the federal sentence set at probation, Romain is not in custody. Black Hammer itself collapsed between 2021 and 2022 after the Colorado failure, internal defections, financial problems, and the Fayetteville standoff, and most of its chapters went inactive well before either prosecution reached charging. The three Russian nationals indicted alongside the American defendants remain unarrested.