Assistant District Attorney Gary Hackbush said the indictment of 18-year-old Peyton Hendron was filed Wednesday.
Hendron, dressed in an orange prison uniform and mask, was silent for one minute of the meeting, which was attended by some relatives of the victims.
Someone shouted “Peyton, you’re a coward!” as he was brought out. He is being held in the pre-trial detention center without a written undertaking not to leave.
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In New York, prosecutors can charge a defendant with first-degree murder only in special circumstances, including if several people were killed in one incident, such as a shooting at Buffalo. The single count against Hendron covers all 10 deaths at the supermarket.
A total of 13 people were shot Saturday at the Tops Friendly Market in the predominantly black Buffalo area. Authorities continue to investigate allegations of hate crimes and terrorism.
The 18-year-old Hendron conducted a live broadcast of the attack from a helmet camera before surrendering to police near a grocery store. Shortly before the attack, he posted hundreds of pages of articles in online discussion groups detailing his plans for the attack and racist motivations.
Investigators are studying these documents, including a personal diary he kept on the Discord chat platform.
During his initial appearance in court last week, court-appointed lawyer Hendron pleaded not guilty on his behalf. He is due back in court on June 9.
The massacre at the Tops supermarket has caused alarm even in a country that is almost numb from the mass shootings. All but two of the 13 people shot during the attack were black. Hendron’s online writings say he planned the attack after he became fascinated with the ideology of white supremacy he encountered online.
The diary said Hendron planned his attack secretly, without assistance, but Discord confirmed on Wednesday that an invitation to access his private writings had been sent to a small group of people about 30 minutes before the attack.
Some of them accepted the invitation. It was unclear how many people read what he wrote or logged in to watch the attack live. It was also unclear whether anyone was trying to warn law enforcement.
Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said investigators are working to obtain, verify and verify Hendron’s messages online.
New York Gov. Katie Hochul on Wednesday authorized Attorney General Leticia James to investigate social media platforms that Gendron uses to determine if they are responsible for “providing a platform for planning and promoting violence.”
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