Ahmed Mahad Mohamed and Abdi Yemeni Hussein, two Somali citizens residing in Tucson, Arizona, were sentenced for their involvement in a conspiracy to travel to the Middle East to join ISIS. Chief United States District Judge Jennifer G. Zipps sentenced Mohamed to 132 months and Hussein to 96 months in prison. Both sentences will be followed by lifetime supervised release, and they are ordered to be deported to Somalia after serving their time.
The duo pleaded guilty on August 1, 2024, to charges of Conspiracy to Provide Material Support and Resources to ISIS. From late 2018 or early 2019 until their arrest on July 26, 2019, they conspired to travel to Egypt with the intent of joining ISIS forces in the Sinai Peninsula.
Starting in August 2018, Mohamed sought contact with other ISIS supporters online, expressing his desire to travel and fight for ISIS. He mentioned wanting "to become 'the beheading guy'" and martyred himself. Mohamed also revealed that his friend Hussein shared similar aspirations. In a meeting between the two in 2019, they discussed their plans further. Hussein suggested that if they could not reach ISIS territory, they should consider attacking the White House.
By June 2019, both men began preparing for their journey by selling cars and purchasing plane tickets from Tucson to Cairo. On July 26, 2019, they attempted to board a flight at Tucson International Airport with approximately $10,000 intended for travel expenses and firearms purchases. Their plan was intercepted by the FBI before they could leave the country.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force while prosecution was managed by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona along with the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.