Racially Motivated Violent Extremist Charged For Possessing An Unregistered Firearm And Child Sexual Abuse Offenses

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announces the return of an indictment charging Lucas Alexander Temple (20, Sarasota) for possessing an unregistered firearm, possession of a firearm with a removed serial number, and receipt of child sexual abuse material. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. Temple was previously arrested on a criminal complaint. 

According to the indictment and criminal complaint, while executing the search warrant at Temple’s home in Sarasota on November 20, 2025, federal agents recovered a shotgun with sawed-off barrel that was not registered to Temple. Federal law prohibits the possession of shotguns with barrels fewer than 18 inches in length without registration in National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. Agents also found evidence that Temple had been plotting a racially motivated act of violence, including pipe bombs, multiple firearms, ammunition, a pressure cooker, literature on how to manufacture explosives, and a written plan as to his intentions:

Temple also possessed a variety of Nazi and mass shooting propaganda materials, including the Journals of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, the perpetrators of the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, and a large flag bearing the Atomwaffen Division symbol:

The Atomwaffen Division (AWD) is a US-based racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist group. The group’s targets have included racial minorities, the Jewish community, the LGBTQ community, the United States Government, journalists, and critical infrastructure. AWD’s ideology largely focused on accelerationism, meaning the goal was to push society into armed conflict in an effort to create a radical social transformation.

As part of its investigation, federal agents learned that Temple had been communicating with other ideologically aligned individuals online about conducting violence against minorities and providing instructions on how to manufacture explosives.

Agents also discovered that, on at least two occasions, Temple received images of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force with assistance from the Sarasota County’s Sheriff’s Office and the Sarasota Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lauren Stoia and Risha Asokan.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).