Chesterfield teen threatened family and warned of death penalty, investigators say

WASHINGTON — A Chesterfield teen who police say planned to storm the White House and take over the country last week wrote of harming family members and threatened to kill anyone who opposed his plan to “rebuild this world,” according to new court documents.

Sai Varshith Kandula, 19, was scheduled to appear in federal court Tuesday afternoon for a bond hearing after authorities said he smashed a U-Haul truck into a barrier near the White House on May 23 in an effort to “seize power” and “be put in charge of the nation.” The truck stopped about 800 feet from the White House.

Kandula’s public defense attorney, Diane Shrewsbury, asked the judge to postpone Tuesday’s hearing, as she needed more time to prepare and develop a proposed plan to release Kandula from custody. Online court records were not updated Tuesday night to show if her request was granted.

Prosecutors outlined the evidence in a new court filing late Friday where they said Kandula’s threats to his family and others were found in a “green book” that contained Kandula’s handwritten thoughts.

The book also contained a speech the Marquette High School graduate apparently intended to give after seizing power. It said after Kandula’s “movement” had taken over, the country would no longer be a democracy, and “any opposition will be met with (the) death penalty.” He told officers after his arrest that he admires Hitler and the Nazis’ “authoritarian nature, eugenics, and their one-world order,” according to court documents.

The speech said he planned to put a new world order in place and signed off with “sieg hail,” a misspelling of a notorious Nazi salute to victory.

Prosecutors argued Kandula should be held without bond while his case moves through federal court. They argued the teen, who is living in the country on a green card, poses a flight risk because he has visited family in India several times and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

The filing also contained surveillance photos both during and after the incident, including of Kanula lying next to a swastika flag that police said he pulled from his backpack after the crash.

Kandula was arrested on suspicion of multiple charges, including threatening to kill, kidnap or inflict harm on President Joe Biden. But federal prosecutors wound up filing only one charge: destruction of U.S. property in excess of $1,000.

Recently this rented U-Haul truck crashed into a barrier near the White House. There were no injuries, however what could have been a soon-forgotten accident quickly turned into something else entirely as officers discovered a Nazi flag in the vehicle. Veuer’s Tony Spitz has the details.