Police say information foiled the plan of the American teenage suspect to attack the Hindu temple

According to police, the alleged plot was foiled only because the 19-year-old suspect's gun was stuck outside the place of worship.

Police say a tip foiled an American teenager's plot to attack a Hindu temple

A Taco Bell cashier's alleged plot to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu temple near Chicago was thwarted by a tip from a co-worker, investigators said.

Alexandros Papourakis, 19, of Palatine, Illinois, appeared in court on Wednesday charged with one count of terroristic threats and one count of unlawful possession of a weapon.

Papourakis allegedly texted a colleague about the planned attack on Sunday, alerting authorities, authorities said.

Police said they found writings in which Papourakis described himself as a white supremacist and wrote about his hatred of non-whites.

Palatine Police Chief William Nord said Thursday that they were tipped off about Sunday's mass shooting by someone who received "electronic communications" from Papourakis.

The commander of the police force said: These communications played a vital role in bringing this issue to the police force.

Prosecutors said the informant worked with Papourakis, the BBC's US affiliate CBS reported.

Nord said a red Honda RDX registered to Papourakis pulled into the parking lot of a "well-known Hindu temple" on the outskirts of Aurora around lunchtime on Sunday.

The suspect allegedly tried to shoot, but the gun jammed, so he went home, where he lived with his mother.

According to NBC Chicago, Papourakis told a co-worker via phone messages that his gun jammed and he got out "super fast."

When he got home, he searched the Internet and tried to learn how to open his gun and called a co-worker and informed them of [his] intention to carry out a mass shooting, according to NBC Chicago.

Officers searched Papourakis' home and found a rifle, loaded magazines, hundreds of rounds of rifle ammunition and body armor, the police chief said.

Nord said they also discovered an eight-page document from the suspect that contained "extremist ideologies" and revealed his plans for the attack.

According to CBS, he described himself as a "sociopathic white supremacist neo-Nazi" in these posts.

Police have questioned Papourakis' mother, who is said to have been uncooperative.

The Hindu temple, identified by local media as the intended target, said it had implemented new security measures.

India's foreign ministry said the incident "adds to growing concerns about racist hostility and anti-Indian hatred in the United States".

U.S. Congressman Raja Krishnamurthy of Illinois said he was "appalled" by the incident.

He said in a Facebook statement that he and his family worship at the temple and were there last Sunday.

The Chicago metropolitan area is home to one of the largest Indian-American populations in the United States.