Prater entered his guilty plea in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Knoxville, admitting to using a "sparkler bomb"—a napalm-based incendiary device—to destroy facilities at the Highlander Center, a school for grassroots leaders and social movements in New Market, Tennessee. The attack occurred in March 2019, just two weeks after the terrorist attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand. Prater faces up to 20 years in federal prison, with sentencing scheduled for September 9 before U.S. District Judge Thomas A. Varlan.
According to court documents, Prater drove from his home to the Highlander Center and spray-painted the symbol of the Iron Guard—a 1930s-era paramilitary arm of the Romanian Nazi Party—in the parking lot before detonating his improvised explosive device. The same Iron Guard symbol was engraved on the rifle used in the Christchurch terrorist attacks. Prater acknowledged that he committed the arson due to his white supremacist ideology and in response to the Highlander Center's faith-based educational priorities and its association with the Civil Rights Movement.
In a separate charge, Prater admitted to attempting to provide material support to Hizballah (Hezbollah), which has been designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the United States since 1997. In 2019, he obtained a document purporting to contain personally identifiable information of over 35,000 individuals allegedly affiliated with the Israeli government. He then provided this document to someone he believed was associated with Hezbollah, telling them to "Start the hunt."
The case represents a convergence of domestic terrorism and international terrorist support charges, reflecting the Justice Department's focus on prosecuting individuals who bridge white supremacist ideology with support for foreign terrorist organizations. The Highlander Center has been a significant institution in civil rights education since its founding, having trained many leaders of the Civil Rights Movement.
"This prosecution demonstrates our commitment to holding accountable those who use violence to intimidate communities and support terrorist organizations," said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, according to the announcement. The case was jointly handled by the Civil Rights Division and National Security Division, reflecting its dual nature as both a hate crime and national security matter.
The prosecution resulted from an FBI investigation with assistance from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Casey T. Arrowood and Kyle J. Wilson for the Eastern District of Tennessee are prosecuting the case alongside Trial Attorney Katherine McCallister of the Civil Rights Division and Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the National Security Division.
As part of his plea agreement, Prater waived indictment by a federal grand jury. The case highlights the Justice Department's continued emphasis on prosecuting domestic terrorism cases that intersect with international terrorism support, particularly those involving white supremacist ideology and attacks on civil rights institutions.