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NBC News
25-05-2025
- NBC News
Leader of neo-Nazi 'murder cult' extradited to the U.S. from Moldova
NEW YORK — The leader of an eastern European neo-Nazi group has been extradited to the United States from Moldova following his arrest last summer for allegedly instructing an undercover federal agent to dress as Santa Claus and hand out poisoned candy to Jewish children and racial minorities, prosecutors said. Michail Chkhikvishvili, a 21-year-old from the republic of Georgia, was arraigned Friday before a federal judge in Brooklyn on multiple felonies, including soliciting hate crimes and acts of mass violence. He pleaded not guilty through an attorney, Samuel Gregory, who requested his client receive a psychiatric evaluation and be placed on suicide watch while in custody. Gregory did not immediately return a message seeking comment. Prosecutors described Chkhikvishvili, who also goes by 'Commander Butcher,' as the leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, an international extremist group that adheres to a 'neo-Nazi accelerationist ideology and promotes violence and violent acts against racial minorities, the Jewish community and other groups it deems 'undesirables.'' They said the group's violent solicitations — promoted through Telegram channels and outlined a manifesto called the 'Hater's Handbook' — appear to have inspired multiple real life killings, including a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, earlier this year that left a 16-year-old student dead. Since 2022, Chkhikvishvili has traveled on multiple occasions to Brooklyn, where he bragged about beating up an elderly Jewish man and instructed others, primarily through text messages, to commit violent acts on behalf of the Maniac Murder Cult, according to court papers. When he was approached by an undercover FBI agent in 2023, Chkhikvishvili recruited the official to a scheme that '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,' according to the Justice Department. He later suggested narrowing the focus to 'dead Jewish kids,' prosecutors said, after noting that 'Jews are literally everywhere' in Brooklyn. Describing his desire to carry out a mass casualty attack, Chkhikvishvili said he saw the United States as 'big potential because accessibility to firearms,' adding that the undercover should consider targeting homeless people because the government wouldn't care 'even if they die,' according to court papers. He was arrested last July in Moldova, where he was held until this week's extradition. In a statement, Attorney General Pam Bondi said the case was 'a stark reminder of the kind of terrorism we face today: online networks plotting unspeakable acts of violence against children, families, and the Jewish community in pursuit of a depraved, extremist ideology.'
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Neo-Nazi leader accused of inspiring school shooting, plotting NYC attack extradited to US
Federal officials extradited an international neo-Nazi group leader they say inspired a teen to commit a school shooting in Tennessee earlier this year and plotted to commit a mass casualty attack in New York City targeting Jewish people. The terrorist group's leader, 21-year-old Michail Chkhikvishvili, orchestrated deadly attacks around the globe, prosecutors said. The citizen of the nation of Georgia was extradited from Moldova on May 22 after he was arrested in July. He was scheduled to be arraigned in Brooklyn on May 23, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The DOJ said the man, who went by the name "Commander Butcher," was the leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, which goes by several other names including MKY. Chkhikvishvili has distributed a writing called the "Hater's Handbook," encouraging people to commit acts of mass violence and "ethnic cleansing," according to court filings. His "solicitations of violence" led to international attacks, including a 2024 stabbing outside a mosque in Turkey, prosecutors said. Chkhikvishvili targeted the U.S. as a site for more attacks because of the ease of accessing firearms, prosecutors said in court records. He told an undercover law enforcement employee, 'I see USA as big potential because accessibility to firearms and other resources,' in an electronic message sent Sept. 8, 2023, court filings show. It was not clear if Chkhikvishvili had an attorney who could speak on his behalf Chkhikvishvili has been indicted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York on four counts including solicitation of violent felonies. The charges stemmed from Chkhikvishvili's communications with an undercover FBI employee in which he trained and encouraged the undercover agent to carry out a mass attack against Jewish people and minorities. Chkhikvishvili corresponded with the undercover agent between September 2023 and at least March 2024. The plot included having an individual wearing a Santa Claus costume hand out poisoned candies to Jewish kids in New York City on New Year's Eve. It later evolved into targeting Jewish people on a larger scale. Chkhikvishvili said he wanted the attack to be a "bigger action than Breivik," prosecutors said. Breivik refers to Anders Behring Breivik, who killed 77 people in a massacre in Norway in 2011 that targeted mostly teenagers at a camp. "His goal was to spread hatred, fear, and destruction by encouraging bombings, arson, and even poisoning children," U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said last year. The MKY group is based in Russia and Ukraine but has members around the world, including the U.S., according to a federal complaint. Members adhere to neo-Nazi ideology promoting violence against racial minorities. The man's arrest came before the deadly attack at Antioch High School on Jan. 22, 2025. However, prosecutors in the New York federal court linked the Antioch shooting to Chkhikvishvili's solicitations of violence in a court filing on May 23, the Nashville Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported. Prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York wrote to the judge requesting the man be incarcerated before trial. They pointed to several ways his actions have 'directly resulted in real violence,' including the shooting at Antioch High School. According to the prosecutors, the 17-year-old attacker claimed he was taking action on behalf of MKY and at least one other group in an audio recording posted online before the shooting. It is not clear if the shooter was a member of MKY or had contact with Chkhikvishvili or other members of the terrorist organization. Chkhikvishvili said the group asks for video of brutal beatings, arson, explosions or murders to join the group, adding that the victims should be 'low race targets.' Chkhikvishvili's name also appeared in the document the DOJ said was written by the Antioch shooter – a 300-page writing in which the shooter espoused misanthropic White supremacist and Nazi ideologies. The shooter also referred to the founder of MKY and said he would write the founder's name on his gun, according to prosecutors. Josselin Corea Escalante, 16, died after the 17-year-old shot her with a pistol in the cafeteria of Antioch High School. Another student was injured during the attack. The shooter, 17-year-old student Solomon Henderson, then shot and killed himself. Contributing: Michael Loria, USA TODAY This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Neo-Nazi leader who inspired school shooting extradited to US
USA Today
24-05-2025
- USA Today
Neo-Nazi leader accused of inspiring school shooting, plotting NYC attack extradited to US
Neo-Nazi leader accused of inspiring school shooting, plotting NYC attack extradited to US Show Caption Hide Caption Antioch High School student-led rally to honor Josselin Corea Escalante Students and local politicians attend a student-led rally to honor Josselin Corea Escalante at Antioch High School in Antioch, Tenn., Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025. The 17-year-old Tennessee school shooter said before the attack he was acting on behalf of the group MKY. The leader of MKY, a Georgian national, was extradited to the U.S. and arraigned in New York on May 23. The charges relate to Michail Chkhikvishvili's alleged training of an undercover agent on how to carry out a mass poisoning. Federal officials extradited an international neo-Nazi group leader they say inspired a teen to commit a school shooting in Tennessee earlier this year and plotted to commit a mass casualty attack in New York City targeting Jewish people. The terrorist group's leader, 21-year-old Michail Chkhikvishvili, orchestrated deadly attacks around the globe, prosecutors said. The citizen of the nation of Georgia was extradited from Moldova on May 22 after he was arrested in July. He was scheduled to be arraigned in Brooklyn on May 23, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The DOJ said the man, who went by the name "Commander Butcher," was the leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, which goes by several other names including MKY. Chkhikvishvili has distributed a writing called the "Hater's Handbook," encouraging people to commit acts of mass violence and "ethnic cleansing," according to court filings. His "solicitations of violence" led to international attacks, including a 2024 stabbing outside a mosque in Turkey, prosecutors said. Chkhikvishvili targeted the U.S. as a site for more attacks because of the ease of accessing firearms, prosecutors said in court records. He told an undercover law enforcement employee, 'I see USA as big potential because accessibility to firearms and other resources,' in an electronic message sent Sept. 8, 2023, court filings show. It was not clear if Chkhikvishvili had an attorney who could speak on his behalf 'Murder cult' leader plotted to poison Jewish kids in NYC, feds say Chkhikvishvili has been indicted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York on four counts including solicitation of violent felonies. The charges stemmed from Chkhikvishvili's communications with an undercover FBI employee in which he trained and encouraged the undercover agent to carry out a mass attack against Jewish people and minorities. Chkhikvishvili corresponded with the undercover agent between September 2023 and at least March 2024. The plot included having an individual wearing a Santa Claus costume hand out poisoned candies to Jewish kids in New York City on New Year's Eve. It later evolved into targeting Jewish people on a larger scale. Chkhikvishvili said he wanted the attack to be a "bigger action than Breivik," prosecutors said. Breivik refers to Anders Behring Breivik, who killed 77 people in a massacre in Norway in 2011 that targeted mostly teenagers at a camp. "His goal was to spread hatred, fear, and destruction by encouraging bombings, arson, and even poisoning children," U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said last year. The MKY group is based in Russia and Ukraine but has members around the world, including the U.S., according to a federal complaint. Members adhere to neo-Nazi ideology promoting violence against racial minorities. Chkhikvishvili allegedly inspired Tennessee school shooting The man's arrest came before the deadly attack at Antioch High School on Jan. 22, 2025. However, prosecutors in the New York federal court linked the Antioch shooting to Chkhikvishvili's solicitations of violence in a court filing on May 23, the Nashville Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported. Prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York wrote to the judge requesting the man be incarcerated before trial. They pointed to several ways his actions have 'directly resulted in real violence,' including the shooting at Antioch High School. According to the prosecutors, the 17-year-old attacker claimed he was taking action on behalf of MKY and at least one other group in an audio recording posted online before the shooting. It is not clear if the shooter was a member of MKY or had contact with Chkhikvishvili or other members of the terrorist organization. Chkhikvishvili said the group asks for video of brutal beatings, arson, explosions or murders to join the group, adding that the victims should be 'low race targets.' Chkhikvishvili's name also appeared in the document the DOJ said was written by the Antioch shooter – a 300-page writing in which the shooter espoused misanthropic White supremacist and Nazi ideologies. The shooter also referred to the founder of MKY and said he would write the founder's name on his gun, according to prosecutors. Josselin Corea Escalante, 16, died after the 17-year-old shot her with a pistol in the cafeteria of Antioch High School. Another student was injured during the attack. The shooter, 17-year-old student Solomon Henderson, then shot and killed himself. Contributing: Michael Loria, USA TODAY
Euronews
23-05-2025
- Euronews
Neo-Nazi cult leader extradited to US for plot to kill Jewish children
The leader of an eastern European neo-Nazi group has been extradited to the United States from Moldova following his arrest last summer for allegedly instructing an undercover federal agent to dress as Santa Claus and hand out poisoned candy to Jewish children and racial minorities, prosecutors have said. Michail Chkhikvishvili, a 21-year-old originally from Georgia, was arraigned on Friday before a federal judge in Brooklyn on multiple felonies, including soliciting hate crimes and acts of mass violence. He pleaded not guilty through an attorney, Samuel Gregory, who requested his client receive a psychiatric evaluation and be placed on suicide watch while in custody. Prosecutors described Chkhikvishvili, who also goes by "Commander Butcher," as the leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, an international extremist group that adheres to a "neo-Nazi accelerationist ideology and promotes violence and violent acts against racial minorities, the Jewish community and other groups it deems 'undesirables.'" They said the group's violent solicitations, promoted through Telegram channels and outlined a manifesto called the "Hater's Handbook," appear to have inspired multiple real life killings, including a school shooting in Nashville earlier this year that left a 16-year-old student dead. Since 2022, Chkhikvishvili has travelled on multiple occasions to Brooklyn, where he bragged about beating up an elderly Jewish man and instructed others, primarily through text messages, to commit violent acts on behalf of the Maniac Murder Cult, according to court papers. When he was approached by an undercover FBI agent in 2023, Chkhikvishvili recruited the official to a scheme that "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," according to the Justice Department. He later suggested narrowing the focus to "dead Jewish kids," prosecutors said, after noting that "Jews are literally everywhere" in Brooklyn. Describing his desire to carry out a mass casualty attack, Chkhikvishvili said he saw the United States as "big potential because accessibility to firearms," adding that the undercover should consider targeting homeless people because the government wouldn't care "even if they die," according to court papers. He was arrested last July in Moldova, where he was held prior to this week's extradition. In a statement, Attorney General Pam Bondi said the case was "a stark reminder of the kind of terrorism we face today: online networks plotting unspeakable acts of violence against children, families, and the Jewish community in pursuit of a depraved, extremist ideology." Iran and the United States made "some but not conclusive progress" in the fifth round of negotiations in Rome over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear programme, Oman's mediator has said. The remarks by Badr al-Busaidi suggested the negotiations between the two sides would continue. But blocking progress is Washington's demands that Iran completely stop enriching uranium, something Tehran has called a "red line" and insists its programme must continue. "The fifth round of Iran US talks have concluded today in Rome with some but not conclusive progress," al-Busaidi wrote on X. "We hope to clarify the remaining issues in the coming days, to allow us to proceed towards the common goal of reaching a sustainable and honourable agreement." Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Iranian state television after the talks that al-Busaidi presented ideas that will be conveyed to the two nations' capitals "without creating any commitments for either side." "These negotiations are too complex to be resolved in just two or three meetings," he said. "I am hopeful that in the next one or two rounds — especially given the better understanding of the Islamic Republic's positions — we can reach solutions that allow the talks to progress." The US was again represented by Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Michael Anton, the State Department's policy planning director. They had no immediate comment afterwards, but the Iranian side said Witkoff left early from the negotiations which were held at the Omani Embassy. Enrichment a key sticking point The talks seek to limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the US has imposed. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to launch air strikes targeting Iran's nuclear facilities if a deal isn't reached. Iranian officials meanwhile increasingly warn they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels. "Iran almost certainly is not producing nuclear weapons, but Iran has undertaken activities in recent years that better position it to produce them, if it chooses to do so," a new report from the US Defence Intelligence Agency said. "These actions reduce the time required to produce sufficient weapons-grade uranium for a first nuclear device to probably less than one week." However, it likely still would take Iran months to make a working bomb, experts say. Enrichment remains the key point of contention. Witkoff at one point suggested Iran could enrich uranium at 3.67%, then later began saying all Iranian enrichment must stop. That position on the American side has hardened over time. Asked about the negotiations, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said "we believe that we are going to succeed" in the talks and on Washington's push for no enrichment. One idea floated so far that might allow Iran to stop enrichment in the Islamic Republic but maintain a supply of uranium could be a consortium in the Middle East backed by regional countries and the US. There also are multiple countries and the International Atomic Energy Agency offering low-enriched uranium that can be used for peaceful purposes by countries. However, Iran's Foreign Ministry has maintained enrichment must continue within the country's borders and a similar fuel-swap proposal failed to gain traction in negotiations in 2010. Meanwhile, Israel has threatened to strike Iran's nuclear facilities on their own if it feels threatened, further complicating regional tensions already spiked by the war in Gaza. Araghchi warned earlier this week that Iran would take "special measures" to defend its nuclear sites if Israel continued to threaten them, while also warning the US it would view it as complicit in any Israeli attack. The landmark 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), capped Tehran's enrichment level at 3.67% and reduced its uranium stockpile to 300 kilograms. That level is enough for nuclear power plants, but far below weapons-grade levels of 90%. Since the deal collapsed in 2018 with Trump's unilateral withdrawal of the US from the accord, Iran has abandoned all limits on its programme and enriched uranium to up to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Yahoo
Alleged neo-Nazi cult leader extradited from Moldova, arraigned on racial hate charges
May 23 (UPI) -- The alleged leader of an Eastern European neo-Nazi White supremacist group has been extradited from Moldova to the United States, the Department of Justice said Friday. Michail Chkhikvishvili, a 21-year-old Georgian national, is accused of inspiring "multiple senseless killings," including planning a New Year Eve's attack in New York City, the Department of Justice said in a news release. Chkhikvishvili was arrested in Moldova in July 2024, and was arraigned Friday in U.S. federal court in Brooklyn. The defendant, who goes by the moniker "Commander Butcher," was indicted on four charges of soliciting hate crimes and acts of mass violence in New York City. The 10-page indictment was filed July 15, 2024, in the Eastern District of New York. Chkhikvishvili is a leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, also known as "Maniacs Murder Cult," "Maniacs: Cult of Killing," "MKY," "MMC" and "MKU," an international racially-motivated, violent extremist group, according to the DOJ. The indictment alleges Chkhikvishvili recruited people to commit violent acts in MKY's ideologies, including planning and soliciting a mass casualty attack in New York City. "This case is a stark reminder of the kind of terrorism we face today: online networks plotting unspeakable acts of violence against children, families and the Jewish community in pursuit of a depraved, extremist ideology," Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. "The Department of Justice will not tolerate hate-fueled violence, and we will pursue those who threaten innocent lives wherever they may be." Prosecutors said that since approximately September 2021, Chkhikvishvili distributed a manifesto titled the "Hater's Handbook" to MKY members and others that encourages people to commit mass violence. Chkhikvishvili wrote that he has "murdered for the white race" and encourages others to commit acts of mass violence and "ethnic cleansing." The Hater's Handbook encourages readers to commit school shootings and to use children to perpetrate suicide bombings and other mass killings targeting racial minorities. Also described are ways to commit mass "terror attacks," including using vehicles to target large outdoor festivals, conventions, celebrations, parades, and "pedestrian congested streets," especially within the United States. In June 2022, Chkhikvishvili traveled to Brooklyn where he encouraged others, primarily via encrypted mobile messaging platforms, to commit violent hate crimes and other violence on behalf of MKY, according to the indictment. In September 2023, an undercover FBI informant, UC, messaged Chkhikvishvili asking whether there was an application process to join MKY. He responded that "we ask people for brutal beating, arson/explosion, or murder vids on camera." Also, "poisoning and arson are best options for murder," and suggested a larger "mass murder" within the United States. To the FBI informant, Chkhikvishvili provided detailed plans and materials, including bomb-making instructions and guidance on making Molotov cocktails to facilitate carrying out these crimes. In November 2023, prosecutors say Chkhikvishvili began planning a mass casualty attack in New York City on New Year's Eve. Someone would dress up as Santa Claus, and hand out candy laced with poison to racial minorities. In January, Chkhikvishvili specifically directed UC to target the Jewish community, Jewish schools and Jewish children in Brooklyn with poison. Chkhikvishvili allegedly told others of his plan and claimed to have previously committed other hate crimes in Brooklyn in 2022. Chkhikvishvili said he was "glad I have murdered," and that he would "murder more" but "make others murder first." In August 2024, someone livestreamed himself stabbing approximately five people outside a mosque in Eskisehir, Turkey, wearing a tactical vest adorned in Nazi symbols. Before the attack, the person also distributed a link to the Hater's Handbook. In January, a 17-year-old student, claiming he was taking action on behalf of MKY and at least one other group, killed one individual and injured another before committing suicide inside Antioch High School in Nashville, Tenn. Chkhikvishvili's name was mentioned. If convicted, Chkhikvishvili faces a maximum sentence of 20 years' imprisonment for solicitation of violent felonies, including hate crime acts and transporting an explosive with intent to kill or injure, as well as five years for conspiring to solicit violent felonies, 20 years imprisonment for distributing information to the making and use of explosive devices and ricin poison, and five years for transmitting threatening communications. "As alleged, the defendant, a white supremacist, recruited others to participate in a violent campaign of hatred against racial minorities and the Jewish community and to engage in the mass killing of children and others in these communities using poison, suicide bombs, firearms, arson fires, and vehicle explosions," United States Attorney Nocella said. "Today's extradition is a giant step forward in holding the defendant accountable for his unspeakably reprehensible and vile efforts to spread fear, chaos and hate. Protecting our homeland, city, district, and country from violent extremists will always be one of the top priorities of the Justice Department and my office." Involved in the investigation were the FBI's New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, New York City Police Department, and more than 50 other federal, state and local agencies, including the Department of State and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. "This defendant allegedly planned to poison Jewish children and carry out mass murder in New York City," NYPD Commissioner Tisch said. "He incited bombings, arsons and violence against racial and religious minorities -- driven by a hateful Neo-Nazi ideology. These weren't idle threats. They were detailed plans. This extradition demonstrates the reach and the determination of American law enforcement agencies to track down the most dangerous and depraved of criminals."
