Florida Man Receives 18-Year Federal Prison Sentence for Supporting Islamic State

Florida Man Receives 18-Year Federal Prison Sentence: A federal judge sentenced a Florida man to 18 years in prison on Thursday for his role in a plot to conduct terrorist attacks in the United States in 2020.

Mohammed Al-Azhari, a 26-year-old American citizen, was punished in federal court in Tampa, according to court documents. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to the terrorist organisation Islamic State in February.

Al-Azhari stated in court documents that he investigated potential terrorist targets in the Tampa Bay area, attempted to purchase a large arsenal of weaponry, and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. Multiple recordings exist of Al-Azhari speaking with confidential or covert sources about violently opposing U.S. military efforts in the Middle East and seeking vengeance against Islamic State prisoners.

Check the official tweet from the National Security Division of the U.S. Department of Justice announcing that a Florida-based Islamic State supporter was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison:

According to an FBI document, Al-Azhari was overheard extolling Omar Mateen, the deceased gunman responsible for the 2016 tragedy at the Orlando Pulse nightclub. According to the FBI, Al-Azhari told a confidential informant, “That’s how I want to die, to be completely honest.”

The informant then inquired about Al-Azhari’s planned body tally. In contrast, I would not accept four or five. As stated in the affidavit, Al-Azhari can be heard saying, “I want to take at least 50,” on the recording. What Brother Omar Mateen did in Orlando is similar to what you are familiar with. He departed with 49 individuals.

A confidential FBI source provided a Glock pistol and suppressor in response to Al-Azhari’s request for both items. In May of 2020, he was apprehended with the armaments in his possession. Investigators discovered at least six knives and three weapons belonging to Al-Azhari, along with dozens of rounds of ammunition and a stun pistol.

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Florida Man Receives 18-Year Federal Prison Sentence

Also unsuccessful was his endeavour to purchase an AK-47 replica. Al-Azhari, according to the affidavit, surveyed multiple potential targets in the Tampa area, including public spaces such as beaches and parks and the local FBI office. According to electronic monitoring, he was practising the terms he would use during an assault.

According to the FBI, Al-Azhari, a California native who has spent the majority of his life abroad, converted to radical Islam. He spent three years in a Saudi Arabian prison after being convicted in 2015 of supporting the armed extremist organisation Jaysh al-Islam in the Syrian conflict.

In 2018, he was deported back to the United States after serving his sentence, and the FBI immediately launched an investigation into terrorist support. In January 2022, Al-Azhari’s declaration of mental incompetence to stand trial prolongs the duration of the case.

In November, following treatment at the federal prison medical clinic in Butner, North Carolina, a magistrate ruled that Al-Azhari was once again competent to stand trial.