By Townhall Chicago News Staff
Police arrested a 19-year-old Palatine man Friday on suspicion of planning a mass shooting at a Hindu temple in Aurora during an active religious festival, authorities said.
The suspect, identified as Alexandros Paparakis, drove to the temple intending to open fire on worshippers, but his firearm jammed and he left the scene, according to police. A coworker at a Mount Prospect Taco Bell separately contacted police after Paparakis sent photos of ammunition and signaled his intent, authorities said.
Officers stopped Paparakis as he returned from the temple and obtained a search warrant. Investigators found a loaded rifle and magazine, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, tactical gear and a manifesto inside his vehicle, according to police.
U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., and his family were at the temple during the festival. Krishnamoorthi called for federal charges against Paparakis and said the case reflects a wider problem.
“You can’t just rely on luck,” Krishnamoorthi said. “There is just violent, hateful rhetoric coursing through the internet and on social media right now.”
A member of the temple’s congregation described the community’s reaction to learning how close the attack came to happening.
“The fact that this incident could have happened this month during this festival period has obviously created a sense of deep shock within the community,” the congregation member said. “At the same time, there is also profound gratitude towards the person that did reveal this information.”
No charges against Paparakis had been formally announced as of Friday. A news conference calling for federal charges was scheduled for later that day, organizers said.
Krishnamoorthi, a Chicago-area congressman, is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Dick Durbin. He has no record of service in the Illinois state Senate.
