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When Mark Steven Domingo introduced himself to what he thought was a like-minded, online community of radical Muslims, he did so in a video declaring his newfound faith in Islam.
Just a day later, Domingo, a 26-year-old former U.S. Army infantryman from Reseda, allegedly began calling for violent warfare against innocent people.
“America needs another vegas event (to be honest),” Domingo wrote in a message to the group, referencing the 2017 shooting at a Las Vegas concert that killed 58 people.
As he published these messages, Domingo took no steps to hide his identity, displaying his face and using his full name, according to an FBI affidavit filed as part of a criminal complaint against him on Monday.
According to a confidential informant for the FBI who met with the man over the course of a month, the posts were just the first indications of Domingo’s growing aggression, as he moved from online threats to allegedly plotting a bomb attack on a rally at a Long Beach park on Sunday.
FBI agents arrested Domingo on Friday after he allegedly supplied an undercover officer with nails to be placed inside the bomb — a fake device that contained no explosives — and scouted Bluff Park with the officer and the informant.
In just two months, the informant observed Domingo evolve from scattershot rage at a variety of targets to resolve to kill random people.
In person throughout March and April, he raged over attacks on Muslims worldwide at dinner table conversations, while decrying a perceived lack of commitment from other members of a local mosque.
At a meeting on April 19, to the informant’s surprise, Domingo brought an AK-47 with him in a backpack, then indicated they could start their killing spree by shooting homeless people outside, according to Tasha Coolidge, the FBI agent who compiled the affidavit.
At the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles on Monday, Nicola Hanna, the U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, described Domingo “as a man who was consumed by hate and bent on mass murder.“
Hanna called him a “recent convert to Islam” with a “stated belief in violent jihad.”
But to members of the local Muslim community, it’s not clear how much Domingo knew about the religion he professed to follow.
“This individual has zero to very little knowledge of Islam from the way he talks,” said Hussam Ayloush, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
“Anyone with knowledge of Islam would know that harming innocent people is one of the most great sins a person can commit in Islam. Hating or harming people, in itself, is a sin, let alone causing harm to people.”
Ayloush said the FBI affidavit showed him that Domingo was a man who was “angry, confused and easily manipulated.”
At times, according to court documents, the informant tried to calm Domingo down from states of intense rage.
He feuded with others around him who had no apparent political affiliation. In one exchange, Domingo called the informant to tell him about his desire to kill his neighbor.
Domingo said the neighbor was an enemy of Muslims, and that spilling his blood would be a lawful act under Islam, both times using Arabic words. But he also told the informant this dispute began when the neighbor complained of trash on Domingo’s front lawn.
In private messages, Domingo told the informant he slept with the AK-47 near his bed following the deadly attacks on Muslims in New Zealand last month. He told the informant he was jealous of another member of the online group who appeared to have more weapons than he did.
As their plot progressed, Domingo challenged the informant to show his dedication to Islam after the informant pointed out the weakness of Domingo’s plans, saying they both might be caught.
“At some point they’re gonna know, and you gotta be a man and stand your ground,” Domingo said. “Then we’re gonna die, shahid.”
About a week before his arrest, Domingo met again with the informant wearing camouflage pants. He was also wearing the backpack containing his AK-47 rifle. The weapon was partially covered by a shirt, according to the affidavit.
The informant expressed surprise that Domingo brought the rifle, later telling him that he thought he was crazy.
“I just want to show you that I’m serious,” Domingo said.
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