Surveillance video taken Halloween night shows 18-year-old Franklin Barrett Sechriest's jeep leaving the parking lot of Austin synagogue Beth Israel.
Agents conducted a search warrant and seized Sechriest's journal. Court documents show he had written "scout a target" on October 31st. Later he wrote "I set a synagogue on fire." FBI Agents also found materials for making Molotov cocktails in the jeep. Stickers were also found in the jeep. One said "No invader is innocent, " another "They hate your ancestors , They hate your culture, They hate your nation,They hate your religion, It is OK to hate them back."
Former US Attorney Matthew Orwig says police did a good job. "Not only did they find evidence of his execution of the crime itself, but also in motivation by what he wrote in his journal. If he's convicted of this, that's something that's going to be something that will be significant in the sentencing phase."
The fire at the synagogue caused about $25,000 in damage.
It's a federal charge because it involves the destruction of a religious facility. He was already facing an arson charge in state court.
Sechriest is a Texas State University student and a member of the Texas National Guard. Orwig says it's a small number of the military "but you do have an infiltration of sorts of radicals and people who are radicalized. So it is a very dangerous trend."
In a statement, the Texas National Guard said it is cooperating with the investigation and will not tolerate misconduct.
If convicted, Sechriest faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
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