‘Maniac murder cult’ leader charged in plot to have Santa Claus hand out poison candy to kids

A federal grand jury has indicted an alleged foreign neo-Nazi “murder cult” leader for plotting a mass casualty terrorist attack, as well as hate crimes, in New York City, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Tuesday.

Michail Chkhikvishvili, also known as “Commander Butcher,” allegedly solicited an undercover Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent to carry out a mass casualty attack that involved an individual dressing up as Santa Claus and giving out poisoned candy to children attending Jewish school in Brooklyn as well as racial minorities during New Year’s Eve 2023, according to a court document. Chkhikvishvili, a Georgian national, was one leader of the “Maniac Murder Cult,” a Russian and Ukrainian-based violent neo-Nazi group, and is alleged to have planned several other crimes, including bombings and arson.

“I’m Commander Butcher National-Socialist since birth and curator of MMC also known as Maniacs Murder Cult,” a copy of text called the “Hater’s Handbook” obtained by the FBI reads. “I can proudly say I’ve murdered for white race and willing to bring more of chaos in this rotten world. This book is for readers who are cruel warriors or are willing to become one and are ready to step on massive actions . . . . Our main goal is to spread flames of Lucifer and continue his mission of ethnic cleansing, great drive of purification.”

Chkhikvishvili provided the undercover FBI agent with detailed plans on how to carry out the Santa Claus-themed attack, instructing them to purchase poison materials and to potentially enlist others to help carry out the attack, according to a court filing. The alleged extremist leader also sent the undercover agent a document titled “The Mujahideen Poisons Handbook” that details how to manufacture different kinds of poisons to advance “Islamic jihad.”

An FBI agent claims the handbook is associated with designated foreign terrorist organizations like the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), per a court document. A copy of the document was found on an ISIS laptop recovered in 2014, Foreign Policy reported.

Chkhikvishvili also would “make repeated complimentary references to Islamic jihad,” according to the court document.

The attack was not carried out on New Year’s Eve, according to court documents. The undercover agent warned that the attack would “bring a lot of heat” to the Maniacs Murder Cult, which Chkhikvishvili said is “exactly what we want” and bragged that his group would be “bigger than Al Qaeda” following the attack.

Chkhikvishvili was arrested on July 6 in Moldova under an Interpol order, The Washington Post reported.

If convicted, Chkhikvishvili faces up to 20 years in prison for soliciting violent felonies, a maximum penalty of five years for conspiring to commit violent penalties, as much as 20 years for distributing materials related to the manufacturing of explosive devices, and another five years for sending threats, according to the DOJ.

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