A Pakistani man residing in Canada plotted to conduct an “ISIS-inspired mass shooting” in New York City, the Justice Department announced.
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, also known as Shahzeb Jadoon, has been charged with attempting to provide support to a foreign terrorist organization, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), and attempting to commit acts of terrorism.
Khan aimed to travel from Canada to New York City, where he planned to use automatic and semi-automatic weapons in a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn. While using an encrypted messaging platform, he began communicating with undercover law enforcement officers who learned Khan had a U.S.-based ISIS supporter.
The individual instructed the undercover officers to “obtain AR-style assault rifles, ammunition, and other materials to carry out the attacks” and identified the areas where the attacks would occur,” the DOJ explained. Khan also declared that New York is “perfect to target Jews” because it has the “largest Jewish population” in the country.
“The foreign terrorist organization ISIS remains a clear and present danger to the American people, and our Jewish citizens are especially targeted by evil groups like these,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “The Department of Justice is proud to help secure this extradition, and we will prosecute this man to the fullest extent of the law.”
FBI Director Kash Patel noted that Khan attempted to enter the United States to “commit an attack on the Jewish community in New York City, planning an ISIS-inspired mass shooting around the one-year anniversary of the attack on Gaza by Hamas.”
“This case is a reminder of the constant threat of terrorism facing every corner of the world — as well as the disturbing rise in threats against our Jewish communities,” Patel further stated on social media. “Your FBI will continue to be on guard and work around the clock to counter them.”
