NJOHSP Investigation Leads to Arrest and Prison Sentence for New Jersey Domestic Extremist
On June 20, 2024, Nicholas Mucci, of Toms River, was sentenced to eight years in prison and 42 months of parole ineligibility following an attack on a group of individuals leaving an anti-racism concert at the Trinity Episcopal Church in Asbury Park, New Jersey. The incident occurred on January 27, 2023, when Mucci threw smoke bombs into the crowd and attempted to pepper spray attendees while shouting “white lives matter.” Mucci pleaded guilty to several crimes, including aggravated arson and terroristic threats. NJOHSP was the lead investigative agency, with support from several other partner agencies.
FBI Newark’s JTTF Arrests New Jersey Man for Plot to Attack Middlesex County Electrical Substations
On July 10, 2024, FBI Newark’s Joint Terrorism Task Force arrested Andrew Takhistov, 18, of East Brunswick, for attempting to solicit an individual to destroy electrical substations in North Brunswick and New Brunswick, to further his white racially motivated extremist (WRME) ideology. Using an unidentified social media messaging platform, Takhistov communicated with an undercover law enforcement officer, expressing his desire and plan to attack the power grid. He provided operational and tactical guidance to conduct the attack, including how to construct a Molotov cocktail, avoid detection, and strategic timing. On social media, Takhistov sought advice on tactical equipment, disseminated weapons-making manuals and other extremist publications, and praised WRME mass shooters. He described his plan to an undercover officer to travel to Ukraine to join the Russian Volunteer Corps because the group is openly National Socialist and specializes in assassinations, attacks on power grids, and other infrastructure sabotage. Takhistov planned to fight with the group and bring his experience back to America.
Analyst Comment: In 2024, domestic extremists continue to utilize social media and messaging platforms to share tactics, recruit individuals, and obtain guidance on target selection prior to attacking critical infrastructure. As highlighted in the 2024 Threat Assessment, an NJOHSP review of attacks, plots, and threats from 2020 to 2023 yielded notable statistics on domestic extremist use of the internet in their pre-operational activities. Of the 56 domestic extremist incidents targeting critical infrastructure, extremists used social media in their pre-operational activity in 29 of those cases, mainly for target selection.
NJSARS Helps Halt Threat Actors | Schedule a ‘See Something, Say Something’ Presentation
NJOHSP, through its Intelligence Management Bureau, oversees the New Jersey Suspicious Activity Reporting System, which remains one of the most critical assets the State has in its arsenal of tools as it looks to halt threat actors in their tracks. NJOHSP relies heavily on its private sector partners and the public to report suspicious activity, as they are often better suited to recognize behavior that is unusual for their location. NJOHSP continues to enhance and expand its outreach to the private sector and the public to ensure that they have the knowledge and resources necessary to remain vigilant and get valuable information to the proper channels. For the last several months, NJOHSP has focused trainings and presentations for private sector entities with large workforces, such as malls and health systems, as well as all aspects of county and municipal emergency management and volunteer organizations. Most recently in June, NJOHSP was invited to present at the Retail Awareness Committee meeting in Hackensack. The committee is an organization dedicated to enhancing the security and awareness of retail operations across the state. Topics included current security challenges faced by retailers, best practices for preventing and responding to security incidents, and exploring opportunities for collaboration and support from state security agencies. The meeting concluded with a “See Something, Say Something” presentation, tailored to what retailers are most likely to encounter. If your organization could benefit from a tailored, “See Something, Say Something” presentation, contact IntelMgmt@njohsp.gov. NJOHSP appreciates your commitment for helping to keep the state’s visitors, businesses, houses of worship, and residents safe and secure by reporting indicators of suspicious activity to local law enforcement or to NJOHSP’s Counterterrorism Watch Desk by calling 1-866-4-SAFE-NJ, emailing tips@njohsp.gov, or filling out the form.
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