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The FBI said Friday that it thwarted a planned terrorist attack targeting a grocery store and a Burger King restaurant in suburban Charlotte on New Year’s Eve, arresting an 18-year-old man accused of attempting to support the Islamic State terrorist group.
Federal authorities announced that Christian Sturdivant, 18, of Mint Hill, North Carolina, has been charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, a federal crime.
At a news conference, officials from the FBI, the Justice Department and partner agencies said Sturdivant was inspired by ISIS and had spent months planning an attack that could have resulted in mass casualties.
“We could be announcing a national tragedy,” said James Barnacle, the FBI’s special agent in charge in North Carolina. “Instead, a terrorist attack was thwarted.”
Investigators said Sturdivant planned the attack for roughly a year and had been radicalizing for longer. Authorities said he consumed large amounts of ISIS propaganda online and created social media videos referencing the group. Officials said Sturdivant worked at a Burger King in Mint Hill but declined to identify the grocery store he allegedly planned to target.
According to court documents, investigators recovered handwritten notes outlining the attack during a search of Sturdivant’s home. Officials said they also found knives and hammers hidden under his bed, along with tactical gloves and a Kevlar vest. A handwritten note indicated Sturdivant hoped to die during a confrontation with police.
U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson for the Western District of North Carolina said Sturdivant selected a grocery store because it was a “high-profile place” where he believed large numbers of people would be present.
Authorities said Sturdivant intended to target non-Muslims, LGBTQ individuals, and law enforcement and military personnel.
“It was a very well-planned, thoughtful attack that was fortunately foiled,” Ferguson said. “Here he was preparing for jihad, and innocent people were going to die.”
Investigators said Sturdivant communicated online with undercover FBI agents and New York Police Department officers whom he believed were members of ISIS.
Barnacle said Sturdivant first came to the FBI’s attention in 2022, when he was a minor, after he left his home armed with a hammer and knife and intended to kill a neighbor. He was stopped by his grandfather, and no charges were filed at the time. Instead, Sturdivant was referred for psychological care, though officials said they do not know the details of that treatment.
Authorities said the investigation into Sturdivant’s most recent plot remains active. Officials added they believe he acted alone and have not identified links to broader networks or other planned attacks.
The arrest comes amid heightened concern about domestic terror threats. In October, the FBI said it disrupted a potential ISIS-linked attack planned for Halloween weekend in Michigan, arresting five people. In December, federal authorities arrested four people accused of plotting bomb attacks in the Los Angeles area on New Year’s Eve, a case Attorney General Pam Bondi said was linked to the Turtle Island Liberation Front, which she described as a far-left group.
