A Mint Hill man allegedly planned an attack inspired by ISIS, according to the FBI.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The  FBI announced Friday that authorities disrupted an “potential terrorist attack” planned for New Year’s Eve in North Carolina. 

A Mint Hill man allegedly planned on using knives and hammers to attack people at a local grocery store and fast food restaurant in support of ISIS, according to the Bureau. 

Christian Sturdivant, 18, was arrested and charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. 

The Charlotte Field Office of the FBI had investigated Sturdivant previously in January 2022, when he was 14, according to the FBI criminal complaint. It says Sturdivant was in contact with an “unidentified ISIS member from a country in Europe,” and was directed to knock on people’s doors and attack them with a hammer. He allegedly tried to follow through but was restrained by his grandfather. 

Sturdivant was not arrested or charged as a minor when he attempted this attack. However, Russ Ferguson, the United States Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, said in a press conference that it is “very fortunate” that Sturdivant is now an adult so charges can be brought against him easier.

The FBI dropped its investigation into Sturdivant after the then 14-year-old got off social media and received mental health attention, Special Agent in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said. 

The current investigation into Sturdivant began December 2025. 

Sturdivant allegedly contacted a social media account he thought was connected to ISIS but was an online covert officer with the New York Police Department. 

Sturdivant allegedly told the NYPD undercover officer that he “will do jihad soon” and said he was a “soldier of the state.” 

The FBI was alerted and saw that Sturdivant had been posting on social media pictures of tactical gear with ISIS-inspired captions since at least October, the criminal complaint said. 

Sturdivant also came in contact with a federal online covert agent, who he also believed to be in ISIS, and began describing specific plans to commit a mass stabbing, according to Ferguson. 

Sturdivant sent the agent a picture of two hammers and knife, claimed he was planning to purchase a firearm to use in the potential attack and that he had been planning the attack for a year, the criminal complaint said. 

On Dec. 29, law enforcement used a warrant to search Sturdivant’s home and found handwritten papers, one labeled “New Years Attack 2026,” which listed items such as a vest, mask, tactical gloves and knives. The plans described a goal of stabbing as many individuals as possible, up to 20 to 21, and then die a martyr by getting shot by law enforcement, the FBI said. 

Sturdivant’s family tried to prevent him from carrying out a violent crime. His grandfather “secured the knives in the home, secured the hammers, tried to make sure Mr. Sturdivant didn’t have them,” however, more knives and hammers were found under Sturdivant’s bed, Barnacle said. 

Ferguson also said it wasn’t Sturdivant’s intention to work alone. He believed he was working directly with ISIS but he is being charged alone. 

Since Sturdivant was under constant FBI surveillance for the last two weeks of December, the general public was not in danger, Ferguson said. 

The FBI arrested Sturdivant as he was leaving a medical facility on New Year’s Eve.

Sturdivant is currently in federal custody and has already made his first appearance in court in Charlotte. 

The town of Mint Hill is in southeastern Mecklenburg and northwestern Union counties, bordering Charlotte. 

For the latest breaking news, weather and traffic alerts that impact you from WCNC Charlotte, download the WCNC Charlotte mobile app and enable push notifications.Â