U.S. Department of Homeland Security Releases Counterterrorism Guide

DHS has released The Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team (JCAT) 2016 Counterterrorism Guide for Public Safety Personnel.  The guide is designed to assist first responders, emergency services and security personnel in identifying, preventing, reporting and responding to terrorism.
The guide highlights:

• Terrorist attack planning cycle.
• Importance of identifying and reporting suspicious activity.
• Precursors of violent extremism.
• Specific terrorist tactics, techniques and procedures that may be used against public safety personnel.
• Additional reference material related to terrorist groups, improvised explosive devices, chemical/biological/radiological/nuclear devices and the Incident Command System.

This guide has been designated public safety sensitive, and copies will be released only to vetted public safety professionals. To obtain a copy, please email your request to asknlectc@justnet.org from an official agency email address, and provide your name, title, agency name and contact information.

Eleventh Twin Cities Man Charged with Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to ISIL

Numerous Alleged Co-Conspirators Previously Convicted at Trial and Pleaded Guilty in Minnesota

Mohamed Amiin Ali Roble, 20, formerly of Minneapolis, was charged today by criminal complaint with providing and conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

The charges were announced by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin, U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger of the District of Minnesota and Special Agent in Charge Richard T. Thornton of the FBI’s Minneapolis Division.

According to the complaint and documents filed in court, on Oct. 4, 2014, Roble flew to China with a family member.  In November 2014, four of Roble’s associates in Minnesota attempted to travel from Minnesota to Syria to join ISIL, via JFK International Airport in New York.  The four defendants were stopped by federal law enforcement agents at JFK and were prevented from flying from New York to various destinations in Europe.  Also in November 2014, Roble bought airplane tickets and flew to Istanbul, but returned to China shortly thereafter.

On Dec. 27, 2014, Roble again traveled to Istanbul and, according to the complaint, subsequently made his way into Syria and joined ISIL.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by members of the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).  The Minnesota JTTF includes members from  the U.S. Marshals Service; Bloomington, Minnesota, Police Department; Ramsey County, Minnesota, Sheriff’s Office; Hennepin County, Minnesota, Sheriff’s Office, Federal Air Marshals Service; Customs and Border Patrol; Department of Homeland Security; Minneapolis Police Department; the Airport Police; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; and the FBI.  The National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the District of Minnesota are prosecuting the case.

Mississippi Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison for Conspiring to Provide Material Support to ISIL

Muhammad Oda Dakhlalla, 23, of Starkville, Mississippi, was sentenced today to serve 96 months in prison for conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin, U.S. Attorney Felicia C. Adams of the Northern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Donald Alway of the FBI’s Jackson, Mississippi, Division made the announcement.

On March 13, Dakhlalla pleaded guilty before Chief U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock of the Northern District of Mississippi, who imposed today’s sentence and ordered Dakhlalla to serve a 15-year term of supervised release.

Dakhlalla pleaded guilty to conspiring with Jaelyn Delshaun Young, 20, also of Starkville, to provide material support to ISIL.  Young pleaded guilty to the same charge on March 30 and was sentenced to serve 12 years in prison to be followed by 15 years of supervised release on Aug. 11.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Jackson Division Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Washington Field Office.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clay Joyner and Bob Norman of the Northern District of Mississippi and Trial Attorney Rebecca Magnone of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.