US Coast Guard officer arrested for white supremacist mass murder plot

Christopher Paul Hasson compiled hit list of prominent Democrats and media figures and mulled a biological attack; police seize powerful arsenal of weapons

By AFP 21 February 2019, 1:29 am Edit
This image provided by the U.S. District Court in Maryland shows a photo of firearms and ammunition that was in the motion for detention pending trial in the case against Christopher Paul Hasson. Prosecutors say that Hasson, a Coast Guard lieutenant is a "domestic terrorist" (US District Court via AP)
This image provided by the U.S. District Court in Maryland shows a photo of firearms and ammunition that was in the motion for detention pending trial in the case against Christopher Paul Hasson. Prosecutors say that Hasson, a Coast Guard lieutenant is a "domestic terrorist" (US District Court via AP)

WASHINGTON — A US Coast Guard officer who espoused white supremacist views and drafted a target list of Democratic politicians and prominent media figures has been arrested on firearms and drug charges.

Christopher Paul Hasson, an admirer of Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik, was arrested last week and a powerful arsenal seized from his home, according to court documents unsealed on Wednesday.

“The defendant intends to murder innocent civilians on a scale rarely seen in this country,” US District Attorney Robert Hur said in a motion seeking that Hasson be detained until trial.

“The defendant is a domestic terrorist, bent on committing acts dangerous to human life that are intended to affect governmental conduct,” Hur said.

Court papers detailed a June 2017 draft email in which Hasson described an “interesting idea” that included “biological attacks followed by attack on food supply.”

Hasson is being held on drug charges and for unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition.

The US Attorney’s office said 15 firearms and over 1,000 rounds of ammunition were recovered from Hasson’s apartment in Silver Spring, Maryland, along with illegal drugs.

In documents seized by the authorities, Hasson “identified himself as a White Nationalist for over 30 years and advocated for ‘focused violence’ in order to establish a white homeland,” the US Attorney’s office said.

Hasson routinely perused portions of the “Breivik manifesto” on amassing firearms and compiling a list of targets, it said.

Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik making a neo-Nazi salute, as judges began reviewing a government appeal against a ruling that his solitary confinement was inhumane and violated human rights on Jan. 10, 2017. (Lise Aaserud/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Among those listed as targets were Democratic House speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer and other Democrats in the House and Senate.

Media personalities included CNN’s Don Lemon and Chris Cuomo.

Hasson, a lieutenant in the US Coast Guard working at US Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, is a former US Marine who also spent two years in the US Army National Guard.

Hasson was remanded in custody and is to appear in court before a court in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Thursday.

Breivik is serving a 21-year sentence for the July 2011 massacre of 77 people, most of them teenagers who were attending a youth camp.

AP Contributed to this report

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