FBI arrests an Afghan man who officials say planned Election Day attack : NPR

WASHINGTON — The FBI has arrested an Afghan man who authorities said was inspired by the Islamic State group and planned an Election Day attack targeting large crowds in the United States, authorities said Tuesday. Announced.

According to the indictment, Nasir Ahmad Tawhidi, 27, of Oklahoma City, told law enforcement authorities after his arrest Monday that he planned the attack to coincide with next month’s Election Day and that he and his co-conspirators would be martyred. He said he expected to die as a man.

Mr. Tauhedi, who arrived in the United States in 2021, has in recent weeks moved forward with his plans for the attack, including ordering an AK-47 rifle, liquidating his family’s assets and purchasing a one-way ticket for his wife and child to return to Afghanistan. Measures were taken to ensure this. .

The arrests come as the FBI faces growing concerns about the potential for extremist violence on U.S. soil, with Director Christopher Wray telling The Associated Press in August, “It’s unimaginable that there was ever a time when there were so many different types of threats.” Everything rises at once. ”

“Terrorism remains the FBI’s top priority and we will utilize every resource to protect the American people,” Wray said in a statement Tuesday.

The FBI affidavit does not say exactly how Tawhidi came to the attention of law enforcement, but it cites evidence in recent months of his determination to plan the attack. A July photo included in the affidavit shows a man, whom investigators identified as Tauhedi, reading aloud to two young children, including his daughter, “a text that describes the rewards that martyrs receive in the afterlife.” is shown in the photo.

Officials said Tauhedi also consumed Islamic State propaganda and donated to charities that serve as fronts for the extremist group, which the FBI said was involved in recruitment and indoctrination in a preliminary investigation. He said he was in contact with the person who made the decision. In July, he also viewed the webcams of the White House and the Washington Monument.

Tawhidi’s alleged co-conspirator was not identified by the Justice Department, which described him only as a boy, a fellow Afghan national, and the brother of Tawhidi’s wife.

Last month, after the two advertised on Facebook that they were selling personal assets, the FBI asked the informant to take up the offer and establish a relationship. The informant then invited them to a shooting range, where they ordered weapons from an undercover FBI agent.

Tauhedi was arrested Monday after being in possession of two AK-47 rifles and ammunition, officials said. An unidentified co-conspirator was also arrested, but the Justice Department did not provide details because he was a juvenile.

The Justice Department said Tauhedi told investigators after his arrest that he was planning a polling day attack targeting a large gathering.

Tauhedi was charged with conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State, which is designated by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization. This crime carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. A message was left at the federal public defender’s office in Oklahoma City, but public records do not list phone numbers for Tawhidi or any of his relatives.

Tauhedi entered the United States on a special immigrant visa. The program allows eligible Afghans who have helped Americans despite great personal risk to themselves or loved ones to apply for admission to the United States with their families.

Eligible Afghans include U.S. military interpreters and individuals essential to the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. The program has been in existence since 2009, but the number of applicants skyrocketed after the turbulent US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.