"Federal prosecutors said they would seek a sentence of up to 18 years for Michail Chkhikvishvili, a 22-year-old from the Republic of Georgia who goes by the nickname "Commander Butcher." He pleaded guilty Monday before a federal judge in Brooklyn to soliciting hate crimes and distributing information about making bombs and ricin. Prosecutors described Chkhikvishvili as the leader of the Maniac Murder Cult, an international extremist group that adheres to an ideology that promotes violence intended to trigger a racial and religious war."
"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 prosecutors. When he was approached by an undercover FBI agent in 2023, Chkhikvishvili recruited the official to various schemes, including one that would have involved dressing up as Santa Claus to give poisoned candy to racial minorities, according to prosecutors."
Michail Chkhikvishvili, 22, from the Republic of Georgia, pleaded guilty in Brooklyn to soliciting hate crimes and distributing instructions for making bombs and ricin. Federal prosecutors intend to seek up to 18 years in prison. Chkhikvishvili led an international extremist group called the Maniac Murder Cult that promotes violence aimed at triggering a racial and religious war and circulated a manifesto called the "Hater's Handbook" through Telegram channels. Prosecutors linked the group's solicitations to real-life killings, including a Nashville school shooting. Chkhikvishvili was arrested in Moldova in July 2024, extradited to the United States in May, and recruited an undercover agent to plots including poisoned candy and attacks on Jewish schools.
Read at AP News
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