A North Carolina woman was arrested on Wednesday following a conspiracy to “kill as many Jews as possible” by driving through a Houston synagogue.
Angelina Han Hicks, 18, planned to target Congregation Beth Israel, according to warrants, and was charged with two counts of felony conspiracy.
Court records indicate that Hicks plotted to carry out “assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, inflicting serious injury” by “driving through the congregation at a synagogue.”
Concerns of imminent threats caused synagogue, school shutdown
The congregation, as well as a Jewish day school, had closed on Wednesday after receiving threats. The Shlenker School said on its website that it had closed “out of an abundance of caution,” although the federation did not disclose the nature of the threats.
The county’s senior assistant district attorney, Alan Martin, told The Associated Press that there had been "some concern that there could be an imminent event" targeting the synagogue.
The FBI Charlotte Joint Terrorism Task Force launched a multi-state investigation on Tuesday following a received tip, according to a report by Fox News.
Hicks was charged as a juvenile in Harris County, Texas, said the report.
"This is an exceptional example of when you see something concerning, you say something to law enforcement," the FBI said in a statement. It added that the investigation remains ongoing, Fox News reported.
Hicks was allegedly planning a "mass casualty event" alongside two male suspects identified as “Teegan and Angel," added the report. The additional suspects have not yet been found.
Investigators have not identified a motive for Hicks’ choosing of a synagogue located 1,000 miles from her North Carolina home, Fox News reported.
Hicks is scheduled to appear in Davidson County District Court on May 13. Her bond was set at $10 million.