Feds charge third Michigan man in terror probe

DETROIT — Federal prosecutors Wednesday charged a third Dearborn man in connection with an alleged Halloween terrorism plot targeting LGBTQ+ friendly clubs in Ferndale and what appears to be the Cedar Point amusement park in Ohio.

The case against 19-year-old Ayob Asmail Nasser was filed amid reports that two New Jersey men also were arrested this week and accused of playing a role in the alleged conspiracy.

Nasser was arrested and charged two days after his brother, Mohmed Ali, and Majed Mahmoud were accused of hatching a plan to commit a terrorist attack in support of the Islamic State.

All three were charged in an updated criminal case with conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State and having firearms that could be used to commit terrorism. The gun charge carries a maximum 15-year federal prison sentence, while the material support charge is a 20-year felony.

“We will not stop. We will follow the tentacles where they lead. We will continue to stand guard with the FBI against terrorism,” U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon said in a statement.

Nasser's civil lawyer, Hussein Bazzi, declined comment Wednesday. But on Sunday, he told The Detroit News that Nasser "categorically denies any involvement in or knowledge of an alleged plot."

"There is no credible evidence that any so-called mass casualty event was ever planned, discussed, or intended. No such plot existed," Bazzi said in the statement.

He also faulted FBI Director Kash Patel's statements on Friday ― three days before the first round of criminal charges were filed ― that praised investigators for thwarting a violent plot tied to international terrorism.

"The recent public statements by Director Patel and other senior officials are reckless, irresponsible, and wholly unsupported by evidence," Bazzi said. "Frankly, at this point, one must ask whether pressure from Washington will be the determinative factor if any charges are in fact brought."

Earlier Wednesday, NBC News reported that a 19-year-old man was taken into custody a day earlier at Newark Liberty International Airport while a second man was arrested Wednesday. The outlet identified them as Tomas Kaan Jimenez-Guzal and Milo Sedarat, both of Montclair.

Nasser and his brother, meanwhile, live in one of two homes raided by members of an FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force on Halloween.

Nasser is identified as a co-conspirator who practiced shooting firearms at area gun ranges in what the government believes was preparation for a planned attack.

He is accused of buying a rifle in September, while Mahmoud bought an AR-15-style rifle and more than 1,600 rounds of ammunition.

Nasser also is accused of playing an active role in scouting potential attack locations in Ferndale and the Midwest while using encrypted messaging apps with unidentified co-conspirators to share extremist and ISIS-related materials, prosecutors allege.

Ali, Mahmoud, Nasser and two others “were participating in an encrypted group chat to plan a potential attack,” FBI Special Agent Nicholas Czech wrote in a court affidavit.

The criminal case also describes how Nasser and a second man repeatedly visited an unidentified amusement park in September that is an approximately three-hour drive from Dearborn.

Phone records show Nasser and the man traveling to the park Sept. 18-19, while closed-circuit security camera footage shows Nasser arriving in Ali's vehicle more than six hours before the park opened, the government alleged.

The investigation also showed Nasser searched multiple maps of the park.

During the search at their home on Halloween, investigators found a computer and analyzed data to discover someone used the device to search "Is it crowded on Halloweekend at (the park)."

HalloWeekends is the formal name of the annual family events at Cedar Point from Sept. 11 through Nov. 1.

“Based on my training and experience, I believe that (an unidentified co-conspirator) and Nasser’s visits to the amusement park are consistent with (the co-conspirator) and Nasser scouting the amusement park as a possible attack location,” the FBI agent wrote.

This is the second time Nasser's conduct has drawn scrutiny this fall.

In October, Nasser and a second man were sued by the maker of the online video game Fortnite. They are accused of creating thousands of fake “bot” players' accounts to simulate human engagement and earn lucrative payouts.

Nasser was served with a summons related to the lawsuit at the home in the 5900 block of Horger Street in Dearborn that was raided by members of an FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force on Friday, federal court records show.

Members of the chat group continued to mull potential terror targets late last month. One co-conspirator texted “American Jewish Center,” and Nasser responded “pumpkin sounds good now,” an apparent reference to Halloween, according to the FBI.

The FBI infiltrated the group with at least one undercover informant who secretly recorded the group’s chats.

In one Oct. 24 chat, a juvenile co-conspirator said: “I talked to (Nasser) and (another co-conspirator), they said it is getting bad. So we got to do pumpkin, ya.”

During the Halloween search, investigators seized cell phones from Ali and Nasser’s home. An analysis of Nasser's phone revealed searches for “cop body armor” and “drones and controllers.”

Investigators also seized AR-15-style rifles, a Beretta 12-gauge shotgun, three pistols and tactical equipment.

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