US Judge Blocks Release of Coast Guard Officer Accused of Plotting Terror Attack - Reports

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th May, 2019) A Federal judge ruled that a US Coast Guard officer accused of plotting a domestic terror attack will remain behind bars until the start of his trial, media reported on Monday.

US District Judge George Jerrod Hazel said that the nature and circumstances of Lt. Christopher Hasson's alleged crime weigh in favor of detention, the Washington Times reported.

Monday's ruling reverses a magistrate judge's decision last month that said Hasson could be released ahead of his court date.

According to court documents filed in February, prosecutors believe Hasson intends to murder innocent civilians on a scale rarely seen in the United States after finding a hit list and other related documents in his apartment.

The plan being laid by Hasson appeared to follow instructions laid out in Norwegian mass murder Anders Breivik's manifesto to strike out at the "liberal" West.

In an email that was never sent, Hasson said he was "dreaming of a way to kill almost every last person on the earth."

The documents also revealed that Hasson's hit list included Democratic lawmakers such as Chuck Schumer, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Elizabeth Warren and many liberal news hosts.

If convicted, Hasson faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for each of the three charges he is facing, the US Justice Department said in a press release.