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A former member of the Michigan Army National Guard was arrested for plotting a disturbing ISIS-inspired mass shooting at a military base near Detroit, federal prosecutors announced.
Anmar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, 19, was busted Tuesday attempting to carry out the twisted attack for the terror group near US Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) in Warren, according to the US Justice Department.
Prosecutors said the shooting was thwarted after the Melvindale man disclosed his lethal plan to two undercover FBI agents posing as fellow ISIS supporters.
“The defendant is charged with planning a deadly attack on a U.S. military base here at home for ISIS,” Sue J. Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, said in a statement.
“Thanks to the tireless efforts of law enforcement, we foiled the attack before lives were lost. We will not hesitate to bring the full force of the Department to find and prosecute those who seek to harm our men and women in the military and to protect all Americans.”
Said had planned for nearly six months to open fire at the TACOM facility, which manages the Army’s supply chain for tanks, and provided the undercover operatives with armor-piercing ammunition and high-capacity magazines to execute the twisted attack on Tuesday, prosecutors detailed in the complaint.
The depraved former soldier also used a drone to conduct aerial surveillance of the attack site, trained the covert agents to use Molotov cocktails, and directed them to strike a specific building to kill the most people.
Said, who spent two years as a guardsman until he was discharged in December, was apprehended after he went to an area near the military base and launched his drone in support of his horrific plan, officials said.
It wasn’t immediately clear why he was discharged.
The federal complaint also includes a photo of Said standing in front of an ISIS flag, allegedly pledging his loyalty to the terrorist organization’s leader.
“ISIS is a brutal terrorist organization which seeks to kill Americans,” said Jerome F. Gorgon Jr., US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
“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. Our office will not tolerate such crimes or threats, and we will use the full weight of the law against anyone who engages in terrorism.”
Said was charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and distributing information related to a destructive device.
If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each charge.
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