Federal prosecutors announced on Friday, Nov. 22, that a former 33-year-old Bronx resident, Erald Alimehmeti, was arrested in connection with a complaint charging him with allegedly attempting to provide material support to ISIS (the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham) and allegedly distributing instructional information regarding the making of explosives. Alimehmeti appeared in federal court Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron and was ordered detained.

 

The news was announced by Damian Williams, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, James E. Dennehy, assistant director in charge of the New York field office of the FBI, and Rebecca Weiner, deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism for the NYPD.

 

“As alleged, Erald Alimehmeti distributed, on pro-ISIS channels, dozens of instructional materials, including those he personally created, that describe handling firearms and making specific explosives,” Williams said. “Alimehmeti also allegedly discussed planning and training for terrorist attacks on behalf of ISIS, provided instructions on how to spray explosives on innocent people, and went so far as to claim that ‘it’s time for a genocide.’  I commend our law enforcement partners and this Office’s career prosecutors who worked tirelessly to detect and disrupt Alimehmeti’s alleged terrorist activities.”

 

For his part, Dennehy said in part, “Thankfully, due to the dedication and determination of the New York Joint Terrorism Force (JTTF), Alimehmeti was stopped before he could further his evil aims. The FBI New York, the NYPD, and all law enforcement partners on the JTTF continue to be unrelenting in our mission to protect our country from anyone attempting to cause violence and mayhem in the name of terrorism.”

 

Meanwhile, Weiner said, “As we continue to see, allegedly attempting to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization usually has just one outcome: arrest. I commend the NYPD and all the members of the FBI’s New York JTTF, for their unwavering focus on keeping New York City and our nation safe.  In today’s borderless world, public safety demands the level of teamwork that defines this and all of our joint investigations.”

 

As alleged in the complaint, Alimehmeti is a U.S. and Albanian citizen and former resident of The Bronx, and moved to Albania in 2014. He was arrested by Albanian authorities and imprisoned in late 2015 to 2019, and again from late 2020 to 2022 for weapons and assault offenses.

 

Prosecutors said between prison terms, Alimehmeti created and used numerous online accounts on encrypted messaging applications and social media websites to communicate with others about planning and training for attacks on behalf of ISIS. For example, in 2019, he expressed interest in “DC sniper” style attacks and referenced an “op” for which he sought the participation of confidential sources, writing, among other things, “Do you know sniping akhi? The formulas and ballistics?” and “I will brief you, brothers, right before the op, not here akhi. Do you both know how to use red dot optics and how to zero them?”

 

The court heard that Alimehmeti also requested what he described as “tactical” equipment and “gear” for “training” and “operations” in support of ISIS, including particular models of vests capable of holding “ballistic plates,” “magazine pouches,” and “knives,” and described modifications he intended to make to his “AKM,” an apparent reference to an assault rifle.

 

In addition, prosecutors said that in 2019 and 2020, Alimehmeti regularly posted pro-ISIS propaganda online, praising specific ISIS leaders and promoting ISIS-issued publications and videos. For example, his social media posts included praise of the ISIS propagandist Shaykh ul-Haqq Musa Cerantonio and the Libyan terrorist and high-ranking al Qaeda official Abu Yahya al-Libi; photographs of various jihadist publications, such as “The Islamic Ruling of the Permissibility of Self-Sacrificial Operations: Suicide, or Martyrdom?” and “The Book of Jihad.”

 

They said the posts also included a video depicting the killing of U.S. Special Forces in Niger and an accompanying comment in Albanian, which translates to, “The Islamic State in Africa killing crusaders, American and French special forces. Look at how the US special forces scream before they die!!! Hahaha!”

 

Prosecutors said Alimehmeti also described his work compiling resources on mixing dangerous chemicals and making explosives to a confidential source and discussed how to make specific types of incendiaries to spray at innocent bystanders in a terrorist attack. On an encrypted messaging channel, Alimehmeti posted dozens of links and downloadable documents on topics such as explosives-making, firearms-handling, defensive tactics, and outdoor survival, with comments encouraging the use of these resources.

 

They said, for example, he posted a video and described it as “a video release from the official media of the Khilafa, explaining how YOU O Muwahid can make TATP explosives in your own home … SO FIGHT THEM O MUWAHID,” an apparent reference to a well-known ISIS video entitled, “You Must Fight Them O Muwahhid,” which provides step-by-step instructions for constructing a TATP-based explosive device and attacking a human target with a knife.

 

Alimehmeti of Tirana, Albania, is charged with one count of attempting to provide material support to ISIS, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of distribution of information pertaining to explosives, destructive devices, and weapons of mass destruction in furtherance of a federal crime of violence, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

 

The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided for informational purposes only. Any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

 

Williams praised what he described as the outstanding investigative work of the FBI’s New York joint terrorism task force, which consists principally of agents and analysts from the FBI and detectives from the NYPD. He also thanked Homeland Security Investigations, the counterterrorism section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s national security division, the office of international affairs of the U.S. Department of Justice’s criminal division, and law enforcement partners in Albania and Australia, including the Australian Attorney-General’s department, for what he said was their valuable assistance.

 

The case is being handled by the Southern District of New York’s national security and international narcotics unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas S. Bradley and Jane Y. Chong are leading the prosecution, with assistance from trial attorney, Jessica K. Fender, of the counterterrorism section.

 

The charges contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.