NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — New court documents reveal a violent online cult may have influenced a deadly school shooting at Antioch High School earlier this year.

The 17-year-old shooter, Solomon Henderson, reportedly claimed to act on behalf of a group called the 'Maniac Murder Cult.'

"Today you see someone, it's a young person, he is troubled, and he finds something online; maybe it's on the dark web, and there is some kind of hate speech, or there is something where all of the sudden he is able to relate to that," said retired FBI Special Agent Scott Augenbaum. "It doesn't happen all that often, but look what happens when it does."

Henderson left an audio message before the shooting, naming 'Commander Butcher' as his inspiration. That name, officials say, belongs to 21-year-old Michail Chkhikvishvili, a Georgian national who federal prosecutors believe is the alleged leader of the online extremist group.

"It's not always going to be on traditional websites like Facebook or X or Instagram; it is going to be hidden from plain sight," Augenbaum said. "The unfortunate thing is any high schooler with a computer can access this information really easily."

Chkhikvishvili was extradited to the U.S. and appeared in federal court in Brooklyn on Friday. He faces several charges, including soliciting hate crimes and encouraging acts of mass violence.

Investigators say the group promotes a manifesto known as the 'Hater's Handbook' which they believe has inspired real-life killings.

"I was always get asked, 'Why can't law enforcement shut these things down?'" Augenbaum explained. "Because a lot of them are anonymous. They are hidden to us."

When tracking international online comments, Augenbaum said they have to navigate the line between hate speech and threats, saying it takes a direct threat for law enforcement to act.

"You can't monitor people's social media feeds just because they feel a certain way," Augenbaum said. "It becomes different when they post online that they are looking to kill U.S. citizens or violently overthrow the U.S. government."

He told News 2 it has been a challenge to keep up with the rapid rise of digital extremism.

"We've always been playing catch up," Augenbaum said. "These criminals, these extremists, are hiding their internet connection, which makes it very challenging."

For parents, Augenbaum has a warning.

"We can't control the bad guys too, but we can control how we react, so these are the things for parents that if you see, your kid has some kind of an anonymous router, which is called a Tor router, that means they are on the dark web," Augenbaum explained. "I'm a father of two boys. There is nothing good that is gonna come out of them being on the dark web."

"Cybercrime, extremist hate speech, we are seeing so much of it on the dark web, and parents make sure that your kids do not know more than you do," Augenbaum concluded.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/nashville/antioch-hs-shooting/parents-warned-following-connection-to-antioch-school-shooter-and-neo-nazi-murder-cult-leader/