(Photos: Mark Domingo)
The Department of Justice announced Monday the arrest of a former U.S. Army infantryman who is accused of plotting a “mass casualty” terrorist attack at a white nationalist rally in Long Beach, California over the weekend, reports ABC News.
Agents arrested the suspect, Mark Steven Domingo, 26, of Reseda, California, on Friday evening after an undercover source for the FBI sent the suspect what he believed was a live bomb that he could use to carry out his attack.
“This investigation successfully disrupted a very real threat posed by a trained combat soldier who repeatedly stated he wanted to cause the maximum number of casualties,” U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Nick Hanna said in a statement.
A 30-page affidavit filed with the criminal complaint against Domingo alleges that his planning to construct a bomb dates back to early March.
Domingo “expressed support for violent jihad,” the affidavit alleges, and he had expressed intentions to target Jews, churches and police officers in revenge for attacks against Muslims. Domingo specifically cited the March attack against Muslim worshipers in New Zealand, posting online, “there must be retribution.”
Domingo was described by the U.S. Attorney as “a former U.S. Army infantryman with combat experience in Afghanistan,” reports heavy.
According to NBC, Mark Steven Domingo served in Afghanistan for four months in 2013.
“Domingo, a former U.S. Army Infantryman, wanted to use improvised explosive devices against innocent civilians and he selected components that would make the bombs even more deadly to the victims he targeted,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. “His arrest today mitigates the threat he posed to others in the Los Angeles community. I want to thank the agents, analysts, and prosecutors who are responsible for this investigation and arrest.”
