19-year-old arrested over alleged plot to attack Hindu temple near Chicago

WASHINGTON: A 19-year-old man has been arrested in the US for allegedly planning a mass shooting targeting people of Indian origin at a Hindu place of worship in the Chicago area. Investigators suspect that a firearm malfunction may have disrupted the alleged plan, potentially averting a major tragedy.

The accused, identified as Alexandros Paporakis, a resident of Palatine, Illinois, allegedly possessed a manifesto containing extremist views advocating violence against South Asians, particularly people of Indian origin.

Rifle, ammunition recovered from suspect’s home

According to investigators, Paporakis may have planned an attack on a Hindu temple in the Aurora area on October 11. However, police are still investigating the exact location he allegedly intended to target.

Paporakis, who worked as a cashier at a Taco Bell outlet in Palatine, reportedly told his co-workers that Sunday would be a special day. On Sunday morning, he allegedly called a colleague and said his firearm had jammed before leaving the area, investigators said.

Police launched an investigation after receiving a complaint that the teenager was planning a mass shooting. The complainant reportedly told investigators that Paporakis had shared a document outlining the alleged attack plan, along with images of a rifle, rifle magazines, body armour and other tactical equipment.

Police departments in Palatine and Mount Prospect coordinated their efforts and took the accused into custody on the evening of October 11, when he was leaving his residence.

A subsequent search of his home led to the recovery of a rifle, several loaded rifle magazines, hundreds of additional rounds of ammunition, tactical equipment and other items potentially linked to the investigation.

Manifesto allegedly contained extremist ideology

Investigators examined the accused’s electronic communications and a document titled “Why I Fought: A.K.A.: (Aurora shooter’s manifesto).” According to police, the document contained white supremacist and extremist views, including references to violence against South Asians and people of Indian origin.

Palatine police chief William Nord said authorities could not underestimate the seriousness of the alleged threat and that protecting religious places of worship remained a key priority for law enforcement agencies.

Accused remanded to judicial custody

Paporakis was produced before the Cook County Third Municipal District Court in Rolling Meadows on Wednesday. A judge ordered that he remain in custody, with the next hearing scheduled for October 30.

The case has emerged during the Hindu festive season in the United States, which includes Navratri. About two weeks earlier, the Shri Swaminarayan Vadtal Dham Hindu temple in Richmond Heights, Ohio, was vandalised.

Police are continuing their investigation to establish the alleged motive, identify the intended target and determine the full extent of the suspected plot.