A month after a massacre at a Buffalo supermarket that killed 10 black residents, federal prosecutors filed charges against the accused shooter on 26 counts of hate crimes and gun violations on Wednesday.
Some federal charges could carry the death penalty if the Department of Justice decides to request it, although there is currently a moratorium on federal executions.
The news of the criminal complaint – which contained new evidence of the suspect’s racist hatred and his commitment to planning an attack to kill as many blacks as possible – came as Attorney General Merrick Garland traveled to Buffalo on Wednesday to visit the massacre site. .
The suspect, 18-year-old Peyton Hendron, is a recognized white supporter who wore armor and a semi-automatic rifle while broadcasting the attack live online. In the days before the attack, he also published a lengthy statement outlining his belief in the so-called substitution theory, a belief rooted in white supremacy that sets out a scheme to “replace” white people with people of color.
In all, 13 people were shot dead on the peaks in the afternoon of May 14; three survived.
In a complaint filed Wednesday, an FBI agent said the suspect’s motive was “to prevent black people from replacing white people and eliminating white people, and to inspire others to carry out similar attacks.”
Authorities said earlier that he had planned his massacre in detail, traveling more than 200 miles from his home in Conklin, New York, after choosing the East Side neighborhood of Buffalo because of the large number of black residents. He is also believed to have written a series of private publications about his plans for Discord, a platform for messages he made public shortly before the attack, full of racist confusion and plans for his attack.
Prosecutors decided to file charges in the hours following the attack, but waited until local prosecutors announced their charges and the FBI closed its investigation, according to officials involved in the investigation.
Investigators said earlier that the accused gunman visited Tops Market before the attack to conduct reconnaissance, but the federal complaint contained new details, including a March 8 visit during which he “created two sketches of the supermarket’s interior design” and counted number of black people inside and outside the store, including cashiers and two black guards. The day before the attack, he returned and hung out inside and outside the store.
Finally, on the day of the attack, federal prosecutors said, he visited only hours before the shooting began and “observed a” healthy number of old and young “black people in the store.”
The federal complaint included other insights into the suspect’s state of mind and preparation, including a handwritten note he left in his bedroom on the morning of the shooting, saying he “must carry out this attack” because he cares “about the future of the suspect.” The white race. “
The federal charges include 10 counts of hate crimes and the use of firearms to commit murder, one for each of those killed in the attack.
In addition, Trini E. Ross, the United States Attorney for the Western District of New York, charged the suspects with three counts of hate crimes and gun charges involving three people who were injured but not killed in the riot.
The accusations of hate crimes hide the possibility of the death penalty, which will be determined on the basis of a discussion of a commission of employees of the Ministry of Justice. But while Ms Ross told a news conference shortly after the killing that the death penalty was “on the table”, the department imposed an indefinite moratorium on the use of the death penalty.
Mr Garland, since taking office last year, has not authorized any local US prosecutors to prosecute the death penalty against a defendant convicted in a conditional case, the Justice Department said Wednesday.
Mr Garland’s visit came two weeks after the indictment was filed against the suspect on 25 counts of murder and other state charges, including a charge of domestic terrorism motivated by hatred – believed to be the first time the 2020 law has been brought against the accused.
Mr Hendron pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released on bail.
The Tops attack and even more deadly massacres at a primary school in Uwalde, Texas, have already affected both politics and New York politics, including the adoption of a series of new state laws designed to tighten gun restrictions, including . raising the minimum age for the purchase of a semi-automatic rifle to 21. Gov. Kati Hochul, a Democrat, also issued two executive orders, including one to step up surveillance of online extremism by state police.
The massacre in Buffalo also prompted Representative Chris Jacobs, a Republican representing some of the city’s suburbs, to adopt a series of gun control measures, sparking a fierce blow from members of his own party. In response, Mr Jacobs said he would not run for a new term in November, condemning the continued opposition of many Republicans to any arms control.
On Sunday, Senate leaders in Washington said they had reached a two-party deal for a series of modest reforms, including intensified scrutiny of potential gun buyers under the age of 21 and funding for so-called red flag laws that allow authorities to confiscate weapons from people who consider themselves dangerous to themselves or others.
Dan Higgins contributed to the Buffalo reports, and Glenn Thrash contributed to the Washington reports. Benjamin Weiser contributed to a report from New York.
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