New York, Oct 15 (IANS) US authorities on Thursday hailed the bravery of the person who alerted them to the alleged mass-shooting plot targeting a Hindu temple, averting a major tragedy.
Palatine Police Chief William Nord praised the person’s “willingness to report these communications”, which “played a vital role” in preventing the attack.
“We were very fortunate that something much, much worse did not happen”, he said. “I’m going to say that during the investigation, what prompted the [person’s] necessity to contact Mount Prospect Police Department, I think, is the communications that were given that day”, he said at a news conference in Palatine, where the alleged plotter lived and was arrested.
The person who gave the tip has not been identified beyond that the individual was his co-worker at a fast-food chain restaurant, Taco Bell.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Chicago acting head Lucas Rothar said, “I want to thank that individual for their bravery”.
“I want to praise and offer my personal, sincerest thanks to the individual who stepped forward”, he said.
“In many successful disruptions by law enforcement in potential acts of violence or terrorism attacks, it is a single courageous member of the public who comes forward to prevent attacks”, he said.
Alexandros Paporakis, a 19-year-old self-described “white supremacist Neo Nazi”, was arrested in Palatine, about 60 kilometres from Chicago, after a tip about his alleged plot to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu Temple in nearby Aurora.
Police acted on a tip from the co-worker to whom Paporakis confided the alleged plot, according to Nord.
Police said that the man told his co-worker he tried to shoot at the temple on Saturday, but the gun did not go off and he left the place “superfast”.
He had planned to try again after fixing the rifle, according to police.
Paporakis is in custody after a court appearance on Wednesday, where he was charged with making a terrorist threat and unlawful possession of weapons.
On Sunday, the co-worker called the police in Mount Prospect, who passed it on to their counterparts in Palatine, where the suspect lived, Nord said.
“The information that was presented to that individual [who gave the tip] on that day necessitated immediate response, and he contacted the Mount Prospect Police Department”, he said.
Nord said that when they arrested him and raided his house, they found a loaded rifle, several hundred rounds of ammunition and a tactical vest.
Nord said that they recovered an eight-page “manifesto” that spewed hatred towards Indians and Hindus and indicated he planned the attack on the temple.
He refused to identify the temple “out of respect” to the community, saying, “We’re going to keep it as is; it’s a known Hindu temple in the Aurora community”.
There are at least three temples in the area.
–IANS
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