A 19-year-old man from Melvindale, Michigan, and former member of the Michigan Army National Guard, was arrested after attempting to execute a mass-casualty terror attack on a US military installation in Warren, authorities announced Wednesday.
The suspect, Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, is accused of plotting an assault on the US Army's Tank-Automotive & Armaments Command (TACOM) facility at the Detroit Arsenal on behalf of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), which the United States designates as a foreign terrorist organization.
According to a federal criminal complaint, Said is charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and distributing information related to the creation of a destructive device. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison for each count.
Justice Department officials say Said coordinated with undercover FBI agents whom he believed were working for ISIS. He reportedly supplied them with armor-piercing ammunition and magazines, trained them in firearms and the manufacture of Molotov cocktails, and conducted aerial reconnaissance over TACOM using a drone. He also provided tactical guidance, including entry points and target selection within the base.
On May 13, the planned date of the attack, Said was arrested after launching his drone near the base in preparation for the assault.
"This defendant is charged with planning a deadly attack on a US military base here at home for ISIS," said Sue J. Bai, head of the Justice Department's National Security Division. "Thanks to the tireless efforts of law enforcement, we foiled the attack before lives were lost."
US Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. for the Eastern District of Michigan emphasized the gravity of the threat. "Helping ISIS or any other terrorist organization prepare or carry out acts of violence is not only a reprehensible crime – it is a threat to our entire nation and way of life," he stated.
The FBI and Army Counterintelligence Command collaborated on the investigation. Brig. Gen. Rhett R. Cox, commanding general of Army Counterintelligence Command, highlighted the importance of vigilance in preventing insider threats, praising the joint operation that led to Said's arrest.
The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is continuing its investigation. Prosecutors are requesting Said be held in pretrial detention, citing both the risk he poses to the community and the potential for flight.
Assistant US Attorney Douglas Salzenstein and Trial Attorneys John Cella and Charles Kovats of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are handling the prosecution.
