St. Louis County Man Pleads Guilty to Providing Material Support to Terrorists

St. Louis, MO – Ramiz Zijad Hodzic, 44, of St. Louis County, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiring to provide material support to terrorists and one count of providing material support to terrorists.  Hodzic appeared today before Judge Catherine D. Perry who accepted his plea and set his sentencing for June 18, 2019.  U.S. Attorney Jeffrey B. Jensen for the Eastern District of Missouri, Special Agent in Charge Richard Quinn of the FBI’s St. Louis Division and Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers made the announcement.

Charged in the indictment are: Ramiz Zijad Hodzic, his wife Sedina Unkic Hodzic, and Armin Harcevic, all of St. Louis County, Missouri, Nihad Rosic, of Utica, New York, and Mediha Medy Salkicevic, of Schiller Park, Illinois. All defendants are charged with conspiring to provide material support and resources to terrorists, and with providing material support to terrorists.  Ramiz Zijad Hodzic and Nihad Rosic are also charged with conspiring to murder and maim persons in a foreign country.  Armin Harcevic pleaded guilty on February 25, 2019, and Mediha Medy Salkicevic pleaded guilty on March 21, 2019.  The remaining defendants have pled not guilty.  As is always the case, charges set forth in the indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

“Disrupting and preventing terrorist activities are critical priorities for this District in its continuing mission to protect our Nation's security.  I commend the Joint Terrorism Task Force for their commitment and tenacity in a lengthy, complex, and successful investigation and prosecution.  But, make no mistake, our work in this regard is never done,” said United States Attorney Jeffrey Jensen.

"Ramiz Hodzic solicited and collected money from the other defendants,” said Special Agent in Charge Richard Quinn of the FBI St. Louis Division. “He sent more than $10,000 worth of materials and cash to terrorist overseas, including to a St. Louisan who was killed fighting for ISIS.”

Hodzic faces up to 15 years imprisonment and/or fines of up to $250,000 for each count.  In determining the actual sentence, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.

This case was investigated by the St. Louis FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Postal Inspection Service, St. Louis Metropolitan and St. Louis County Police Departments.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Drake, Howard Marcus and Kenneth Tihen of the Eastern District of Missouri and Trial Attorney Joshua Champagne of the Department of Justice’s Counterterrorism Section.