Two suspects are facing federal charges Monday of planning a terror attack over Halloween weekend in Michigan after federal investigators say they found over 1,600 rounds of ammunition, multiple firearms, and tactical vests in raids on their homes and a storage unit.
FBI Director Kash Patel announced in a post on X last week that five people had been arrested, but only two were charged in a 73-page criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud are charged with receiving and transferring, and attempting and conspiring to transfer, firearms and ammunition, knowing and having reasonable cause to believe that the firearms and ammunition would be used to commit a federal crime of terrorism.
They are expected to appear in court on Monday afternoon.
According to the complaint, Ali and an unnamed juvenile were referenced in third-party communications from July to October of this year. The conversations stated that the "brothers" were planning to conduct an attack on behalf of the Islamic State terrorist group.
Ali allegedly purchased a shotgun, AR-15-style rifle and other firearm accessories in August and September, the same time the third-party conversations referred to an attack, according to the complaint.
One of the accessories he purchased was a "forced reset trigger that allows a shooter to increase the rate of fire in a semiautomatic weapon," the complaint alleges.
Mahmoud allegedly also purchased an AR-15-style rifle in September and then bought more than 1,600 rounds of ammunition a month later, according to the complaint.
The two men and the juvenile practiced shooting at multiple gun ranges in September and October, the complaint said.
They and two other alleged conspirators were using encrypted communication and social media applications "to share extremist and ISIS-related materials that encourage attacks similar to what they planned,” the complaint said.
One of the alleged co-conspirators had his phone reviewed by a Customs and Border Patrol agent upon his return to the U.S. in August, the complaint said. The man had google searches for "ISIS," the "Islamic State," and pictures of "military-style clothing with weapons," the complaint said.
The individual, who was not named, also apparently had a group call on an encrypted communication application with five others, but Mahmoud and Ali were not a part of the call, according to the complaint. But a confidential FBI informant was allegedly on the call.
According to the complaint, a different co-conspirator discussed traveling to Syria to join ISIS and had tried to convince "Athari" and "Bukhari" to join them. Investigators believe those names were used to reference Ali and the unidentified juvenile.
The second co-conspirator allegedly told the group that "Athari" and "Bukhari" were staying behind to do "the same thing as France," which investigators believed to be a reference to the 2015 ISIS terror attack in Paris, according to the complaint.
In one of the group calls made by the co-conspirators, one of the men allegedly said that they believed an attack would "probably" be at "at like a club, a disco," the complaint said.
Ali, Mahmoud, and the minor allegedly made trips in September to Ferndale, Michigan, an area that investigators said is known for its clubs, bars, and restaurants. The agent who wrote the complaint said he believed that the group, all of whom are under the age of 21, could have been scouting locations to carry out their alleged attack plan.
The week before Halloween, the juvenile allegedly told Ali that he had spoken to his "brothers" and that "we are going to do pumpkin," according to the complaint. Two days before Halloween, the complaint alleges, the juvenile called a man who is known for "radical Islamic views and his vocal support of Islamic extremist ideology consistent with that of ISIS."
On the Oct. 29 call, he allegedly said he was indecisive over his intention to "do a good deed." The two shared prayers, and then the man told him to "should not wait" and to do the "good deed now," according to the complaint.
The unidentified juvenile allegedly spoke to Ali on the same day to describe the call and relay the advice: "There is something good to do, do it right away," the complaint said. Ali then allegedly indicated he would call Mahmoud.
Federal agents recovered AR-15-style rifles, two shotguns, four handguns and ammunition in addition to tactical vests and GoPro cameras at Ali and Mahmoud's residence, according to the complaint. Agents also seized two tactical backpacks, chest-rig vests and 24 empty magazines at a storage unit allegedly rented by Ali.
Amir Makled, who represents Ali, described his client as a 20-year-old U.S. citizen "with a lawful interest in recreational firearms."
"There is no evidence whatsoever of a planned terror or ‘mass casualty’ plot,” Makled said Saturday in a statement.
