A Texas man is in FBI custody on Thursday after authorities say he tried to help ISIS and deliberate a terrorist assault on American soil – all from his condominium in Houston.
Authorities mentioned 28-year-old Anas Mentioned was looking for methods to commit violent acts on behalf of the Islamic State within the Houston space.
He has been charged with making an attempt to supply materials help to the terrorist group.
Mentioned was arrested final week on the condominium complicated the place he lived, in response to FBI Particular Agent in Cost Douglas Williams.
Williams mentioned that whereas in custody, Mentioned admitted to researching the right way to conduct an assault on native army recruiting facilities, providing his house as sanctuary for ISIS operatives, bragging that he would commit a “9/11-style” assault if he had the assets and making an attempt to supply ISIS propaganda.
“We stopped a possible terrorist assault from taking place proper right here in Houston! Any day we will publicly say that may be a good day,” FBI Houston mentioned.
A detention listening to is scheduled for Thursday afternoon in federal court docket in Houston.
Mentioned has been on the FBI’s radar for the reason that bureau acquired a tip in 2017 about him buying two stickers: “one containing a picture of the Dome of the Rock2 with an ISIS flag overlaying the picture, and one other exhibiting the white silhouette of a person holding a rifle with the caption, “Successful the Islamic Nation.”
Mentioned was interviewed by the FBI 4 occasions in 2018 in relation to the sticker purchases.
“Throughout an interview performed on or about January 29, 2018, the Defendant admitted each stickers had been meant to indicate help for ISIS,” although he didn’t help killing within the identify of ISIS on the time, in response to a detention memo laying out the allegations in opposition to Mentioned.
Mentioned started supporting the ISIS ideology in 2015 when his household returned to the U.S. from Lebanon.
In a 2019 FBI interview, Mentioned claimed “he not consumed radical Islamic propaganda and solely used the web for schoolwork and for watching sports activities,” in response to the memo.
That wasn’t true, in response to the DOJ.
“On or about October 18, 2023, pursuant to authorized course of, FBI acquired info from Meta Platforms, Inc. (‘Meta’) relating to 11 Fb accounts utilized by the Defendant that confirmed he continued to help ISIS and the violent assaults carried out in its identify,” in response to the DOJ.
His relations “expressed their issues” in FBI interviews, and “subsequent evaluation of the Defendant’s digital gadgets revealed a number of encrypted messaging purposes containing information of his efforts to create and disseminate propaganda that glorified ISIS’s ongoing violence, the proof underlying the fabric help offense charged within the indictment,” the division alleged.
Mentioned allegedly refused to adjust to FBI brokers who executed a search warrant in opposition to him on Nov. 8, and he smashed his mobile phone.
Supply hyperlink
