Prosecutors announced Wednesday that the leader of a Neo-Nazi group has been charged with plotting to murder Jewish children in New York City by giving them poisoned candy, the Associated Press reported.
Michail Chkhikvishvili, a 21-year-old man from the eastern European nation of Georgia, was charged with soliciting hate crimes and acts of mass violence and three other crimes. Chkhikvishvili is the leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, a group which according to the Justice Department seeks to disrupt the existing social order through violent means, including terrorism.
The insidious plot involved having a member of the group dress up as Santa Claus to entice Jewish children into taking and eating the poisoned candy. It is unknown why the group thought appearing as a Christian figure would appeal to Jewish children.
The Justice Department stated that the plot began to take shape in November 2023. “The scheme involved an individual dressing up as Santa Claus and handing out candy laced with poison to racial minorities and children at Jewish schools in Brooklyn.”
Chkhvishvili drafted "step-by-step instructions" and “detailed manuals on creating and mixing lethal poisons and gases,” prosecutors added.
He previously wrote a handbook calling for the committing of acts of mass murder, including school shootings and using children as suicide bombers, among others.
Chkhvishvil faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted on all counts.