Alleged ‘Murder Cult’ Leader Accused of Plot to Poison Children in New York City

The U.S. Department of Justice in Washington on June 20, 2023. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

The alleged leader of an international cult has been charged in connection to a plot to poison children in New York City, federal prosecutors announced on July 16.

Michail Chkhikvishvili, 21, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Brooklyn on four charges, including soliciting hate crimes and acts of mass violence, according to a statement by the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The Georgian national was arrested in Moldova under an Interpol order earlier this month.

Mr. Chkhikvishvili allegedly began planning a “mass casualty event” in November 2023, which involved recruiting someone to dress up as Santa Claus. That individual was tasked with handing out candy laced with poison to racial minorities and Jewish children in New York City on New Year’s Eve, according to a federal indictment filed on July 15 in the Eastern District of New York.

Also known as “Mishka,” “Michael,” or “Commander Butcher,” the defendant allegedly relayed step-by-step instructions to an individual on how to carry out the scheme without getting caught. He detailed manuals on creating and mixing lethal poisons and gases, prosecutors allege.

Between July 2022 and March 2024, Mr. Chkhikvishvili recruited others to commit arson and bombings targeting racial minorities and the Jewish community, according to an affidavit.

The probe of the defendant’s schemes involved an undercover FBI agent who posed as a possible recruit. The federal agent asked him about the process of becoming a cult member.

The defendant responded, “Well yes we ask people for brutal beating, arson/explosion or murder vids on camera.” He further stated that “poisoning and arson are best options for murder” and suggested also considering a larger “mass murder” within the United States. He further advised that the victims should be “low race targets,” according to the DOJ.

The Maniac Murder Cult is an international racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist group based in Russia and Ukraine with members in the United States and around the world. The goal of the group is to create fear and chaos through terrorism and violent acts, the DOJ says.

Mr. Chkhikvishvili resided in Brooklyn with his grandmother in 2022 but worked to further the group’s goals even before traveling to the United States, prosecutors allege.

Since September 2021, he allegedly distributed a manifesto titled the “Haters Handbook” to group members and others, which encouraged members to engage in acts of mass violence to further its neo-Nazi principles, according to the DOJ. The handbook specifically encourages committing attacks within the United States.

It is unknown if the defendant has retained legal representation. He is currently being held in Moldova, and it is unclear whether he will be extradited to the United States to face charges.

Mr. Chkhikvishvili faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted. Specifically, he faces up to 20 years for soliciting violent felonies, five years for conspiring to solicit violent felonies, 20 years for distributing information on making explosives, and five years for sending threatening messages.

Mr. Chkhikvishvili could not be reached for comment.

From NTD News