Southmoore ‘virtual student’ charged as co-conspirator in Election Day attack investigation

The FBI has arrested an Afghan man who officials say was inspired by the Islamic State militant organization and was planning to attack large crowds in the United States on Election Day, the Justice Department said Tuesday. Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, of Oklahoma City, told investigators after his arrest Monday that he had planned his attack for Election Day next month and that he and a co-conspirator were expected to die as martyrs, according to charging documents.

Who is the co-conspirator?

Tawhedi’s alleged co-conspirator was not identified by the Justice Department, which described him only as a juvenile, a fellow Afghan and the brother of Tawhedi’s wife.

After the two advertised the sale of personal property on Facebook, the FBI hired an informant last month who responded to the offer and developed a relationship. The informant later invited them to a shooting range, where they ordered guns from an undercover FBI agent who posed as the informant’s business partner, according to court documents.

Officials said Tawhedi was arrested on Monday after taking possession of two AK-47 rifles and ammunition he had ordered. The unidentified co-conspirator was also arrested, but the Justice Department did not provide details because he is a juvenile.

Moore Public Schools released a statement Wednesday confirming additional details about the child:

“Dear MPS families,

Yesterday, Moore Public Schools learned that a Southmoore virtual student was arrested. The Justice Department says he is being charged as a co-conspirator in conspiring to carry out an Election Day terrorist attack in the United States. Multiple local, state and federal law enforcement agencies are involved in this active investigation. All questions should be directed to her. We are grateful for our effective agency partnerships and for the quick and efficient actions our law enforcement agencies are taking to keep our schools, our community and our state safe. At the time of this statement and pending the completion of the law enforcement investigation, the other students at the home were not in school. MPS will cooperate and assist the investigation in any way possible. We encourage our community and students to remain vigilant about the safety of our district and schools.

Kind regards, Dr. Robert Romines, superintendent

What happened?

Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, of Oklahoma City, told investigators after his arrest Monday that he had planned his attack for Election Day next month and that he and a co-conspirator were expected to die as martyrs, according to charging documents.

Tawhedi, who arrived in the United States in September 2021, had taken steps in recent weeks to advance his attack plans, including by ordering AK-47 rifles, liquidating family assets and purchasing one-way tickets for his wife and child’s journey home to Afghanistan, officials said.

The arrest comes as the FBI faces increasing concerns about the possibility of extremist violence on U.S. soil. Director Christopher Wray told The Associated Press in August that he “had a hard time remembering a time in my career when so many different types of threats are all heightened at once.”

“Terrorism remains the FBI’s top priority, and we will use all resources to protect the American people,” Wray said in a statement Tuesday.

An FBI affidavit does not say exactly how Tawhedi came onto investigators’ radar, but cites evidence from recent months that shows his determination in planning an attack. A July photo included in the affidavit shows a man investigators identified as Tawhedi reading “a text describing the rewards a martyr receives in the afterlife” to two young children, including his daughter.

Officials say Tawhedi also consumed Islamic State propaganda, donated to a charity that acts as a front for the militant group, and communicated with a person the FBI determined based on previous investigations was involved in recruiting and Indoctrination of people interested in extremism was involved. In July, he also watched webcams from the White House and the Washington Monument.

After his arrest, Tawhedi told investigators that he had planned an attack on Election Day that targeted large gatherings of people, the Justice Department said.

Tawhedi was charged with conspiracy and attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State, which the U.S. designates as a foreign terrorist organization. The charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He appeared in court on Tuesday and was jailed. An email seeking comment was not immediately returned to an attorney listed as his representative.

It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

A for-sale sign stood in the yard outside a modest two-story brick home said to be associated with Tawhedi’s family in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore.

A woman who identified herself as Tawhedi’s wife declined to discuss the case.

“We don’t want to talk in the media,” said the woman, who did not give her name.

Tawhedi entered the United States in 2021 on a special immigrant visa and is on probation pending the completion of his immigration proceedings, the Justice Department said. The program allows eligible Afghans who have helped Americans to apply for entry to America with their families, despite great personal risk to themselves and their loved ones.

Eligible Afghans include U.S. military interpreters and U.S. Embassy staff in Kabul. Although the program has been around since 2009, the number of applicants skyrocketed after the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.

Shawn VanDiver, the president of #AfghanEvac, a coalition of organizations dedicated to assisting Afghans trying to leave Afghanistan, said that while the allegations were serious, “it is critically important that we not be one.” Blame an entire community for the actions of a single person.” Thousands of Afghans who have settled in the United States are working to build new lives and contribute to our shared future.”

“These are the same people who stood with us in Afghanistan for over two decades, defending the values ​​we hold dear,” he said in a statement. “Now they are our neighbors and we must support them as they seek safety and stability in their new home.”