Brooklyn Men Accused of Plotting to Join ISIS, Attack NYC Were Vocal About Beliefs: Feds

One suspect's mother took his passport in attempts to prevent him from traveling to Syria, officials say

Two men arrested on charges of plotting to help ISIS were vocal both online and in personal conversations about their commitment and desire to join the extremists, with one of them speaking of shooting President Barack Obama to "strike fear in the hearts of infidels," federal authorities said.

The men were among three charged Wednesday with attempt and conspiracy to provide material support to a terrorist organization.

Akhror Saidakhmetov, 19, was arrested at John F. Kennedy Airport, where he was attempting to board a flight to Istanbul, with plans to head to Syria, authorities said. Another man, 24-year-old Abdurasul Hasanovich Juraboev, had a ticket to travel to Istanbul next month and was arrested in Brooklyn, federal prosecutors said. The two were held without bail after a brief court appearance.

A third defendant, Abror Habibov, 30, is accused of helping fund Saidakhmetov's efforts. He was ordered held without bail in Florida.

If convicted, each faces a maximum of 15 years in prison.

NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said this was the first public case in New York involving possible fighters going to ISIS, but he hinted at other ongoing investigations.

“This is real," Bratton said. "This is the concern about the lone wolf inspired to act without ever going to the Mideast -- or the concern of once they get to the Mideast, acquire fighting skills, capabilities and then attempting to return to the country."

Authorities said Juraboev first came to the attention of law enforcement in August, when he posted on an Uzbek-language website that propagates ISIS ideology.

"Greetings! We too want to pledge our allegiance and commit ourselves while not present there," he wrote, according to federal authorities. "Is it possible to commit ourselves as dedicated martyrs anyway while here?"

"What I'm saying is, to shoot Obama and then get shot ourselves, will it do? That will strike fear in the hearts of infidels."

He also talked of planting a bomb in Coney Island if the terror group asked him.

Court documents highlight the extent of the suspects' alleged intentions. In a recorded conversation in January, Saidakhmetov told an FBI informant he would "just go and buy a machine gun, AK-47, go out and shoot all police," if he could not get travel documents to Syria, according to the complaint.

Law enforcement officials say any potential homegrown threat was aspirational, not operational, but authorities moved in because they believed the suspects' plans to travel abroad were imminent and their alleged intent to join ISIS real. Agents had been tracking the men for about eight months.

Saidakhmetov's mother took away his passport to try to prevent him from traveling, according to the complaint. When he called his mother and asked for it back, she ended up hanging up on him. She had asked him where he wanted to go and he said that a person who had the chance to join ISIS and didn't would face divine judgment.

The travel agent who sold the plane ticket to Saidakhmetov said Wednesday that the man appeared to be "a regular American teenager." The 19-year-old booked a $571 roundtrip ticket to Turkey on Feb. 19.

Habibov had recently been a Brooklyn resident before moving a few years ago and falling out of contact with the borough's Uzbek community, said Farhod Sulton, president of the Brooklyn-based Vatandosh Uzbek-American Federation.

At some point, he stopped coming to Uzbek gatherings, Sulton said, and he was reading extremist literature. "We had a tense conversation about the ultra-orthodox understanding of Islam. I think he got into the wrong hands in terms of learning Islam."

Loretta Lynch, the U.S. Attorney for Manhattan and Obama's choice to be U.S. attorney general, said "The flow of foreign fighters to Syria represents an evolving threat to our country and to our allies."

Saidakhmetov's attorney, Adam Perlmutter, said his client was a "young, innocent kid" who would plead not guilty.

"This is the type of case that highlights everything that is wrong with how the Justice Department approaches these cases," Perlmutter said. Juraboev's attorney had no immediate comment.

Saidakhmetov is a Brooklyn resident and citizen of Kazakhstan. Juraboev is a Brooklyn resident from Uzbekistan. Habibov had been in the U.S. legally, but his visa had expired. He was appointed a public defender on Wednesday.

The Kazakhstan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was aware of Saidakhmetov's arrest. It said he was born July 26, 1995, in the city of Turkestan in southern Kazakhstan, left for Uzbekistan in October 2011 and has not returned. He was not registered at the Kazakhstan Consulate in New York and neither he nor his relatives have reached out for any help, the ministry said.

ISIS largely consists of Sunni militants from Iraq and Syria but has also drawn fighters from across the Muslim world and Europe. The group has claimed responsibility for killing several American hostages, including journalists James Foley, Steven Sotloff and aid worker Peter Kassig. Another captive American, 26-year-old aid worker Kayla Mueller, was confirmed dead on Feb. 10, four days after ISIS claimed she had been killed in an airstrike in Syria. 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us