Federal authorities in the United States have accused an 18-year-old boy of planning a “potential terrorist attack” on New Year’s Eve in Mint Hill, a suburban town outside of Charlotte, North Carolina.
On Friday, U.S. Attorney’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officials identified the suspect as Christian Sturdivant, a U.S. citizen who lives in Mint Hill. Sturdivant’s alleged plan was for a grocery store and fast food restaurant in Mint Hill.
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“Countless lives were saved here,” U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson said at a news conference.
“Everyone is in the grocery store on New Year’s Eve, buying things to celebrate. And this is where serious, serious loss of life and serious injury could have occurred.”
Mr Ferguson said Mr Sturdivant was arrested on New Year’s Eve while planning the attack. The 18-year-old is charged with “attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization” and made his first court appearance on Friday.
Sturdivant could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison, Ferguson said.
But Mr. Ferguson, an appointee of President Donald Trump, appeared at a news conference to express his frustration with the court system for not approving previous efforts to detain Mr. Sturdivant for mental health reasons.
“I think it’s worth noting that as part of that effort, the FBI took Mr. Sturdivant before a state judge and attempted to commit an involuntary offense,” Ferguson said.
“And that’s because not only did he threaten the lives of others, he said he intended to be shot and killed by the police officer in the process. So he threatened the lives of others and harmed himself, but the state magistrate judge denied the involuntary offense.”
Authorities later revealed that a hearing with a magistrate took place on Monday, days before the arrest. Sturdivant turned 18 last month.
Authorities release details of arrest
At a news conference Friday, officials said this week’s arrest was part of a multiyear effort to investigate Sturdivant, who was described as a “prolific social media user.”
The suspect was previously an employee at a local Burger King in North Carolina.
James Barnacle, special agent in charge of the FBI’s North Carolina field office, said the suspect first came to the agency’s attention in 2022 when he tried to contact the Islamic State group through social media.
The United States considers ISIL to be a foreign terrorist organization, and has conducted numerous military operations in the Middle East to combat ISIL, including recently in Nigeria.
Mr Barnacle claimed Mr Sturdivant knocked on doors and was instructed to attack people with a hammer, but his first attempts were thwarted by family members. He was about 14 years old at the time.
“No charges had been filed at that time,” Barnacle said. “He received psychological care, but I don’t know the details.”
Then, in December, Barnacle said the FBI discovered that Sturdivant had returned to social media and posted threatening messages.
He also allegedly had contact with two undercover agents, one with the New York City Police Department and the other with the FBI.
“In just a few days, Mr. Sturdivant sent a direct message to an undercover officer online with photos of two hammers and a knife,” Barnacle said. “This message was important because in recent years, ISIS propaganda magazines had encouraged the use of knives in terrorist attacks in Western countries.”
Barnacle added that subsequent messages included an oath of allegiance to ISIL and a request for assistance in obtaining firearms.
“The JTTF (Joint Terrorism Task Force) has gathered evidence that he intended to become a martyr, pledged allegiance to ISIS and turned his back on his country and his fellow citizens,” Barnacle said of the 18-year-old.
“We allege that Mr. Sturdivant was willing to sacrifice himself in terrorist attacks using knives and hammers in support of the murder, torture, and extreme violence that ISIS represents.”
A search of Sturdivant’s home by the FBI reportedly found a hammer and knife hidden under Sturdivant’s bed, as well as a note allegedly detailing the attack plan.
“I can tell you that the FBI was monitoring this case 24/7, all night, Christmas Day and Christmas Eve,” Barnacle said. He described the suspect’s targets as “Jews, Christians, and LGBTQ people.”
FBI Director Kash Patel quickly touted Sturdivant’s arrest on social media, praising the bureau and its partners for “definitely saving lives.”
The arrest comes one year after a fatal attack on New Year’s Day in which a pickup truck driver deliberately drove his car into Bourbon Street, New Orleans’ famous red-light district.
Fourteen people were killed and authorities recovered an ISIL flag from the truck.
But critics have questioned the use of undercover police officers to make “terrorism-related” arrests, and some defense attorneys have argued that undercover police officers make incriminating statements or encourage suspects to do things they otherwise would not do.
The 18-year-old’s attorney has not yet made any public comment.
