Washington:
“A special day.” That is how a 19-year-old Taco Bell cashier in Illinois, Chicago, allegedly described his last Sunday to colleagues. Alexandros Paporakis also shared a document, or what police called a manifesto, outlining an alleged plan to carry out a mass shooting of ‘Indian people’ and photos of his tactical gear.
In the 8-page document, Paporakis openly identified as a white supremacist at work and told them he “couldn’t wait to kill Indian” people, according to prosecutors from the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.
One of his colleagues reported the teenager to the police, thwarting his bloody plans in time. The Mount Prospect and Palatine police departments coordinated to locate and arrest Paporakis while he was leaving his home on Sunday afternoon, the same day detectives believe he may have been planning to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu temple in Aurora, around 40 miles (65 km) southwest of Palatine.
During searches at his home, police recovered a rifle, multiple loaded rifle magazines and hundreds of rounds of additional rifle ammunition. “Among the recovered items was a tactical vest containing body armour and a patch displaying imagery associated with white supremacist extremism,” Palatine police said.
Detectives also examined electronic communications and a document attributed to Paporakis titled “Why I Fought: A.K.A.: (Aurora Shooter’s Manifesto)”, which described Indian, Jewish and African American people as “subhumans” and outlined a plot to kill as many of them as possible, according to a court document obtained by The Associated Press.
The exact intended location of Paporakis’s target remains under investigation, but officials believe he wanted to target the largest Hindu temple in southwest suburban Aurora. Sri Venkateswara Swami (Balaji) Temple is the largest Hindu temple in Aurora, Illinois.
Prosecutors said Paporakis called one coworker earlier in the day on Sunday, saying that his gun had jammed and he left “super fast” without being seen.
Police said that following consultation with prosecutors from the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, Paporakis faced felony charges of “making a terrorist threat” and unlawful weapon possession.
The suspect appeared for a detention hearing on Wednesday, where a judge ordered him detained, according to police, who said his next court appearance is scheduled for October 30.
Human rights advocates have said that hate against South Asians has spiked in the US in recent years due to factors such as rising anti-immigration rhetoric and policies as well as a rise in white supremacist ideology.
