ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man accused in 2020 of plotting terror assaults within the U.S. and buying an arsenal of weapons has pleaded guilty to trying to present materials help to the Islamic State extremist group.
Mohammed Al-Azhari, a 25-year-old U.S. citizen, additionally agreed Thursday to settle for an 18-year jail sentence throughout the plea listening to earlier than U.S. Magistrate Judge Anthony Porcelli in Tampa federal court docket. A proper sentencing date has not been set.
Al-Azhari admitted in court docket papers that he scouted potential terrorism targets in the Tampa Bay area, sought to purchase a number of weapons and pledged an oath of allegiance to the Islamic State. The FBI recorded many conversations between Al-Azhari and confidential or undercover sources wherein he mentioned avenging imprisoned Islamic State fighters and utilizing violence to oppose U.S. navy actions within the Middle East.
An FBI affidavit says Al-Azhari was recorded as expressing admiration for Omar Mateen, the deceased shooter on the Orlando Pulse nightclub bloodbath in 2016, and even drove there to scope out the placement. In a dialog with a confidential informant, the FBI says, Al-Azhari mentioned, “That’s how I want to die, to be honest.”
The informant then requested how many individuals Al-Azhari wished to kill.
“I don’t want to take four or five, no. I want to take at least 50,” Al-Azhari replied on the recording, in accordance to the affidavit. “You know like, brother Omar Mateen in Orlando did. He took 49 with him.”
The confidential FBI informant ultimately equipped Al-Azhari with a Glock handgun and a silencer as he had requested. He was arrested in May 2020 after taking possession of the weapons. Investigators additionally seized three firearms, a crossbow, dozens of rounds of ammunition, a stun gun and at the least six knives belonging to Al-Azhari. He additionally sought to purchase a completely computerized AK-47-style weapon however was unsuccessful.
According to the affidavit, Al-Azhari performed reconnaissance on a number of potential Tampa Bay targets, together with seashores, parks and even the Tampa FBI area workplace. He additionally allegedly rehearsed what he would say when finishing up an assault, a few of which was intercepted by digital surveillance.
“Know America. Today is your emergency. Today we kill from you guys like you killed from us,” he’s overheard saying, in accordance to the affidavit. “This is a revenge for Muslims.”
Alazhari is initially from California however spent a lot of his life abroad and ultimately embraced extremist Islamic ideology, in accordance to the FBI. He was imprisoned for 3 years in Saudi Arabia after a 2015 conviction involving his advocacy for Jaysh al-Islam, an armed extremist group combating within the Syrian battle.
In 2018, after serving that sentence, he was deported to the U.S., the place the FBI instantly opened a terrorism help investigation.
One motive the case has taken so lengthy to resolve is that Al-Azhari was declared mentally incompetent to stand trial in January 2022. After remedy at a federal jail medical middle in Butner, North Carolina, a choose determined in November that Al-Azhari’s competence had been restored.