A Pennsylvania man was sentenced to more than 17 years, in federal prison for attempting to help the terrorist group ISIS blow up a church, officials stated.
Mustafa Mousab Alowemer, 24, of Pittsburgh, pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to provide material support to ISIS in connection with his plan to attack a church in Pittsburgh.
“Alowemer admitted to planning a deadly bombing of a Pittsburgh church in the name of ISIS,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
“The defendant’s plan to bomb a Pittsburgh church and risk death or injury to residents in the area in the name of ISIS was thwarted by the extraordinary work of the Pittsburgh Joint Terrorism Task Force,” said U.S. Attorney Cindy K. Chung for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Assistant Director Robert R. Wells of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division said: “Alowemer’s plan to conduct an attack at a church in Pittsburgh and inspire other ISIS supporters in the United States was unsuccessful thanks to the efforts of law enforcement officials at both the federal and state level. This sentencing demonstrates the commitment we share with our partners to pursuing justice against those who violate our laws and seek to harm innocents in our communities.”
According to court documents, Alowemer plotted to bomb a church located on the north side of Pittsburgh using an explosive device.
His stated motivation for conducting such an attack was to support the cause of ISIS and to inspire other ISIS supporters in the United States to join together and commit similar acts in the name of ISIS.
Alowemer also targeted the church, which he described as a “Nigerian Christian” church, to “take revenge for our [ISIS] brothers in Nigeria.”
Alowemer was aware that numerous people in the proximity of the church could be killed by the explosion, the evidence indicated.
In May 2019, Alowemer distributed multiple instructional documents to the use of explosives) to a person who Alowemer believed to be a fellow ISIS supporter.
This person, however, who was an FBI employee.
In or around June 2019, Alowemer purchased several items, including nails and acetone (nail polish remover), with the belief that they were necessary to assemble a destructive device.
Between April 16 and June 11, Alowemer met four times in person with an FBI Undercover Employee (UCE) and/or an FBI Confidential Human Source (CHS).
At the June 11 meeting with the UCE and CHS, Alowemer provided additional details about the bomb plot and boxes of nails, he had purchased for construction of the device.
Alowemer got Google satellite maps, which included hand-written markings identifying the church and routes of arrival and escape. Alowemer also got a 10-point handwritten plan outlining details to personally deliver explosives in a backpack.
Alowemer expressed a desire to meet one more time to conduct more planning to detonate the bomb in July 2019.
That meeting was later scheduled for June 19 in the Pittsburgh area, at which time Alowemer was arrested.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Soo C. Song for the Western District of Pennsylvania and Trial Attorneys Brenda Sue Thornton and S. Elisa Poteat of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting this case.
The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force members who were directly involved in this investigation include: FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), IRS – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Pennsylvania State Police, Allegheny County Police Department, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, Allegheny County Port Authority Police, Allegheny County Probation, University of Pittsburgh Police Department and UPMC Police Security.