Vance, Kash Patel silent on Aurora temple plot as calls grow

FBI Director Kash Patel, Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance have faced criticism for remaining silent over an alleged mass shooting plot targeting an Illinois Hindu temple. Lawmakers and Hindu advocacy groups have urged action and a federal hate-crime investigation

Washington: Nearly a week after police foiled an alleged plot to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu temple in Aurora, Illinois, FBI Director Kash Patel, Second Lady Usha Vance and Vice President JD Vance had not made a public statement on the plot on their official accounts, even as lawmakers urged Patel to act and a Hindu advocacy group asked the Vice President why he had remained silent.

A review of Patel’s official and personal X accounts’ posts, @FBIDirectorKash and @Kash_Patel, the FBI’s website, and the @SLOTUS, @VP and @JDVance accounts found no post or statement on the plot as of the evening of October 17. The only public word from the bureau has come from its Chicago field office, which on October 14 announced the arrest of Alexandros Paporakis, 19, of Palatine, crediting the Palatine and Mount Prospect police.

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“The FBI aggressively works alongside our local and state law enforcement partners to identify, investigate, and dismantle any threats of violence driven by radical ideologies,” Special Agent in Charge Ryan Whalen said. Earlier Patel’s office said: “As this continues to be an ongoing investigation, information will be released as appropriate.” “With all due respect, Mr. @VP, why have you remained silent? Are you afraid to speak up for Hindu Americans whose safety is now at stake?” the Hindu American Foundation wrote on X on October 16.

“Given your wife’s Hindu heritage, we hope you will publicly condemn this hatred and reaffirm that every American deserves to worship without fear,” it added.

The same day, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, who said his family was at the temple on October 11 for the start of Navratri, called on Patel by name to protect the “American people against domestic violent extremism.” “Hate toward minorities is not new in America; however, the explosive growth in hate toward Indian Americans is astonishing,” Krishnamoorthi said.

Patel was also an addressee of an October 16 letter from India Caucus co-chairs Rich McCormick and Ro Khanna seeking a federal hate-crime investigation. Paporakis is charged in Cook County Circuit Court with one count of making a terrorist threat and one count of unlawful possession of a weapon. No federal charges have been filed, according to CBS Chicago. Police said his car entered the temple parking lot on October 11 and left 13 minutes later.

According to the FBI, he told a co-worker his gun had jammed. Usha Vance’s last @SLOTUS post was on October 6. Patel’s official account has posted through the week on other FBI cases.