What to Know
- 30-year-old home health aide Saddam "Adam" Mohamed Raishani was arrested at JFK Airport in June 2017, federal prosecutors say
- He was trying to fly to Turkey, then get to Syria to join ISIS, according to authorities
- Raishani admits he had been actively preparing for months to join the terrorist organization
Adam Raishani, 32, a home health care aide, pled guilty in federal court in Manhattan Wednesday to charges of attempting and conspiring to provide material support to ISIS, prosecutors say.
Raishani faces up to 25 years in prison when sentenced next March.
In 2015, Raishani assisted another individual with his travel abroad to join ISIS, according to prosecutors. Raishani made transportation arrangements and accompanied that person from the Bronx to Kennedy Airport for a flight to Turkey where he then planned to cross into Syria to join ISIS.
Raishani planned his own travel abroad to join ISIS in Syria in 2017. In preparation for his travel, he paid off his debts and bought clothing he intended to wear overseas.
He was arrested on June 21, 2017, while attempting to board a flight to Turkey at Kennedy Airport, prosecutors say. His plans were foiled because he unwittingly contacted a person who was a confidential source for the U.S. government.
“As he admitted in court today, Adam Raishani helped another man travel to Syria to join and train with ISIS, and he plotted to take that trip himself to carry out his own desire to wage violent jihad,” U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said. “Thanks to the excellent work of the FBI and the NYPD, Raishani’s trip to ISIS was canceled at the airport."
