A 19-year-old Illinois man, Alexandros Paporakis, is accused of plotting a mass shooting at a Hindu place of worship in the Aurora area. Prosecutors alleged he spent months planning the attack, researching the location online and writing an eight-page manifesto calling for violence against multiple racial and religious groups.
He has not entered a plea, and the allegations remain unproven in court. Court documents alleged that the manifesto contained racist slurs and hateful statements targeting people of Indian ancestry, Jewish people and Black people. These are allegations contained in charging documents and have not been proven in court. Alarmed by the messages, two co-workers contacted emergency services, leading police to locate and arrest him in a parking lot near his apartment later that afternoon.
Paporakis, of Palatine, was arrested on October 11 and is charged with making a terrorist threat, a Class X felony, and unlawfully possessing a rifle with a barrel shorter than 16 inches, a Class 3 felony. A judge ordered him held pending trial on October 14. His next court appearance is scheduled for October 30.
Authorities said the alleged attack was prevented after two co-workers alerted police, which led to his arrest before anyone was injured. Prosecutors say the document described those groups as “subhumans” and discussed a plan to kill as many people as possible. The Palatine Police Department said the investigation is continuing with assistance from the FBI’s Chicago Field Office.
He also allegedly remarked that the intended victim “was certainly saved by his God today.
