A federal grand jury in Memphis, Tennessee, has indicted two white supremacists accused of plotting to kill Democrat Barack Obama and dozens of other black people.

Twenty-year-old Daniel Cowart and 18-year-old Paul Schlesselman were arrested last month, before Obama won the presidential election. They are being held without bond.

They were indicted on Wednesday on charges of possessing a sawed-off shotgun, planning to rob a licensed gun dealer and threatening a presidential candidate.

Authorities say they plotted a killing spree that would end with them attacking Obama while dressed in white tuxedoes and top hats.

Court records indicate Cowart and Schlesselman conceived the plot on their own and it fell apart quickly. Messages were left with their attorneys.