A New York man was arrested Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Justice and charged with attempting to provide material support and personnel to the ISIS terrorist group.
Newsweek reported that federal prosecutors believe that Arafat Nagi, 42, of Lackawanna, New York, pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and traveled to Turkey in 2012 and 2014 with the purpose of purchasing military items and meeting with ISIS leaders.
The FBI first targeted Nagi back in August 2014 when a Lackawanna resident said that the man talked to him about violent jihad in the community and blamed the United States for rebel deaths in Yemen.
"The FBI has a responsibility to ensure that our law enforcement and intelligence agencies are positioned to identify existing or emerging threats," FBI Special Agent in Charge
Brian Boetig said in a statement.
"The (Joint Terrorism Task Forces) relies on community engagement to gain perspectives on radicalization and to deter recruitment and the spread of radicalization messages. We continue to call upon people to contact law enforcement if they know of someone who has been influenced by ISIL rhetoric on social media – powerful propaganda that calls for followers to commit quick and unpredictable violent acts."
A statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Western District of New York charged that Nagi purchased combat items that included a tactical vest, army combat shirt, body armor, Shahada Flag, combat boots, backpack, burn kit, a hunting knife, machete, and night vision goggles.
"Thanks to the combined efforts of law enforcement and community members, this defendant is no longer capable of achieving his goal of joining the most despicable group of our time," U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. said in a statement.
Nagi's arrest comes on the heels of federal officials arresting Harlem Suarez, 23, in Florida on Monday. He was charged with a plot to set off a backpack bomb on a beach after he became an alleged ISIS follower,
reported NBC News.
Authorities wrote in court documents that Facebook postings allowed them find Suarez and his attempt to attract people to join ISIS. Federal prosecutors alleged that he ordered an AK-47 assault rifle in May.
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