A potential terrorist attack over Halloween weekend was thwarted by the FBI, according to a social media post by agency Director Kash Patel.
In a post on X, Kash Patel said that the FBI thwarted the ISIS-inspired Halloween terror attack and added that the officials acted fast.
"The FBI stopped a massacre before it could happen. Two Michigan men planned an ISIS-inspired Halloween terror attack near Detroit- stockpiling weapons, scouting targets, and training at gun ranges. This FBI acted fast, followed the evidence, and likely saved countless lives," Patel said.
How FBI foiled alleged plot
Two individuals were arrested by the FBI this week in the United States in connection with an ISIS-inspired plot that emerged in online chatrooms, two law enforcement officials said.
The investigation had started months ago and centred on people communicating online both within the US and overseas, they added. An FBI undercover person was introduced into the chatroom in the early stages of discussion, the officials said.
“This all relates to an investigation that started months ago into people who were communicating online with each other here in the United States … but also talking to people overseas, possibly connected to ISIS,” said Miller, citing conversations with law enforcement officials who had been briefed.
The participants discussed whether to carry out an ISIS-inspired plot in the US – “though what that plot was, when that plot would be, what the target would be, was unclear as they discussed various options in terms of timing,” Miller said.
It was not clear what charges the two individuals faced or whether charges had been filed. Miller said the FBI moved in this week when a group of people who were being monitored “went to a shooting range with AK-47s and other weapons, fired a large number of rounds of ammunition, practiced tactical high-speed reloads, and in the discussions it was picked up a reference to what we’re told is ‘pumpkin day’ – a possible reference to Halloween.”
Multiple officials said the individuals had discussed in their communications whether they were ready to carry out an attack.
Some said they needed more time and training, but a younger member of the group had said that it was time to act, two officials added. At one point, the group also discussed taking a one-day trip to New York City to see the sights, including visiting Rockefeller Center and looking at the Statue of Liberty.
There was no indication the trip was intended as reconnaissance for an attack, but the conversation caught the attention of both the FBI and the NYPD as the investigation continued.
Arrests and questioning in Michigan
Two people were arrested and three others were being questioned in Michigan over an alleged plot to carry out a violent attack, according to two law enforcement officials familiar with the case.
The suspects’ ages range from 16 to their 20s. Attorney Amir Makled, who represents one of the adults in custody, told CNN on Sunday that three people have been arrested, two were questioned and an additional two people were questioned and released.
John Miller said on Friday, “The FBI swept out from the Detroit field office last night and through this morning, taking people into custody, executing search warrants and doing subpoenas for phones, computers and other material.”
Makled urged people to wait for “verifiable facts” before jumping to conclusions.
His client, a 20-year-old US citizen who has not been publicly identified, is cooperating with authorities and has not been formally charged, he said. “We are confident that, once the facts are reviewed objectively, it will be clear there was never any planned ‘mass-casualty’ event or coordinated terror plot of any kind,” Makled said in an email to CNN.
“The reality here involves a small group … with a lawful interest in recreational firearms, not a terrorist cell or organised attack. All firearms were legally obtained and registered,” Makled added.
In a post on X, Kash Patel said that the FBI thwarted the ISIS-inspired Halloween terror attack and added that the officials acted fast.
"The FBI stopped a massacre before it could happen. Two Michigan men planned an ISIS-inspired Halloween terror attack near Detroit- stockpiling weapons, scouting targets, and training at gun ranges. This FBI acted fast, followed the evidence, and likely saved countless lives," Patel said.
How FBI foiled alleged plot
Two individuals were arrested by the FBI this week in the United States in connection with an ISIS-inspired plot that emerged in online chatrooms, two law enforcement officials said.
The investigation had started months ago and centred on people communicating online both within the US and overseas, they added. An FBI undercover person was introduced into the chatroom in the early stages of discussion, the officials said.
“This all relates to an investigation that started months ago into people who were communicating online with each other here in the United States … but also talking to people overseas, possibly connected to ISIS,” said Miller, citing conversations with law enforcement officials who had been briefed.
The participants discussed whether to carry out an ISIS-inspired plot in the US – “though what that plot was, when that plot would be, what the target would be, was unclear as they discussed various options in terms of timing,” Miller said.
It was not clear what charges the two individuals faced or whether charges had been filed. Miller said the FBI moved in this week when a group of people who were being monitored “went to a shooting range with AK-47s and other weapons, fired a large number of rounds of ammunition, practiced tactical high-speed reloads, and in the discussions it was picked up a reference to what we’re told is ‘pumpkin day’ – a possible reference to Halloween.”
Multiple officials said the individuals had discussed in their communications whether they were ready to carry out an attack.
Some said they needed more time and training, but a younger member of the group had said that it was time to act, two officials added. At one point, the group also discussed taking a one-day trip to New York City to see the sights, including visiting Rockefeller Center and looking at the Statue of Liberty.
There was no indication the trip was intended as reconnaissance for an attack, but the conversation caught the attention of both the FBI and the NYPD as the investigation continued.
Arrests and questioning in Michigan
Two people were arrested and three others were being questioned in Michigan over an alleged plot to carry out a violent attack, according to two law enforcement officials familiar with the case.
The suspects’ ages range from 16 to their 20s. Attorney Amir Makled, who represents one of the adults in custody, told CNN on Sunday that three people have been arrested, two were questioned and an additional two people were questioned and released.
John Miller said on Friday, “The FBI swept out from the Detroit field office last night and through this morning, taking people into custody, executing search warrants and doing subpoenas for phones, computers and other material.”
Makled urged people to wait for “verifiable facts” before jumping to conclusions.
His client, a 20-year-old US citizen who has not been publicly identified, is cooperating with authorities and has not been formally charged, he said. “We are confident that, once the facts are reviewed objectively, it will be clear there was never any planned ‘mass-casualty’ event or coordinated terror plot of any kind,” Makled said in an email to CNN.
“The reality here involves a small group … with a lawful interest in recreational firearms, not a terrorist cell or organised attack. All firearms were legally obtained and registered,” Makled added.
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