A 19-year-old man has been arrested in Illinois, the United States, over an alleged plan to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu temple, reportedly motivated by hatred towards the Indian community.
Alexandros Paporakis, who worked as a cashier at a Taco Bell restaurant, was arrested on Sunday after two co-workers alerted police to suspicious statements and messages they had received from him.
According to Al Jazeera, prosecutors alleged that Paporakis had told a co-worker he could not wait to kill Indians.
Investigators believe he planned to attack a Hindu temple in Aurora, about 65 kilometres from his home in Palatine. However, police stressed that the exact intended target remains under investigation.
One co-worker also alleged that Paporakis had called to say his rifle had malfunctioned while he was believed to be attempting to carry out the attack.
The suspect later allegedly sent a video showing the firearm failing to work and said he intended to try again once it had been repaired.
A search of his home uncovered an AR-style rifle without a serial number, ammunition, tactical equipment and items bearing Nazi symbols.
Investigators also found an eight-page document containing white supremacist views and plans to kill people of Indian, Jewish and Black backgrounds.
Paporakis is facing charges of making terrorist threats and unlawful possession of a firearm. On Wednesday, a court ordered that he remain in custody pending trial.
The case has raised concerns over growing racial hostility in the US, particularly towards Indian and South Asian communities.
According to the Centre for the Study of Organised Hate (CSOH), the number of hateful posts targeting South Asians on X more than tripled between January 2024 and June 2026.
A survey by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace found that one in four Indian-American respondents had experienced racial insults since early 2025.
Additionally, nine per cent reported receiving physical threats, while four per cent said they had been physically attacked.
Experts have linked the growing hostility to disputes over immigration policies and the H-1B skilled-worker visa programme, which is widely used by Indian nationals working in the US.
However, the same survey found no significant change since 2020 in the proportion of respondents reporting personal experiences of discrimination.
