June 19th, 2015
WASHINGTON—Amir Said Abdul Rahman Al-Ghazi, 38, a U.S. Citizen, was arrested this morning in North Olmstead, Ohio, on charges that he attempted to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), possessed a firearm as a convicted felon and trafficked marijuana.
According to the complaint, Al-Ghazi, who changed his name from Robert McCollum earlier this year, is alleged to have pledged his support to ISIL and Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi via social media in 2014. From July 2014 to June 2015, Al-Ghazi made multiple statements trying to persuade others to join ISIL. He also expressed his own desire to perpetrate an attack on the United States and had attempted to purchase an AK-47 assault rifle. Al-Ghazi has communicated with individuals he believed to be members of ISIL in the Middle East and took steps to create propaganda videos for ISIL.
Al-Ghazi was also charged with distributing a schedule 1 controlled substance—marijuana. From the period of February 2014 through June 2015, Al-Ghazi sold almost two kilograms of marijuana to a confidential informant. He was also charged with possessing a firearm even though he had multiple prior felony convictions. On multiple occasions Al-Ghazi expressed his interest in purchasing an AK-47, eventually purchasing one from an FBI undercover employee on June 19, 2015. back...
According to the complaint, Al-Ghazi, who changed his name from Robert McCollum earlier this year, is alleged to have pledged his support to ISIL and Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi via social media in 2014. From July 2014 to June 2015, Al-Ghazi made multiple statements trying to persuade others to join ISIL. He also expressed his own desire to perpetrate an attack on the United States and had attempted to purchase an AK-47 assault rifle. Al-Ghazi has communicated with individuals he believed to be members of ISIL in the Middle East and took steps to create propaganda videos for ISIL.
Al-Ghazi was also charged with distributing a schedule 1 controlled substance—marijuana. From the period of February 2014 through June 2015, Al-Ghazi sold almost two kilograms of marijuana to a confidential informant. He was also charged with possessing a firearm even though he had multiple prior felony convictions. On multiple occasions Al-Ghazi expressed his interest in purchasing an AK-47, eventually purchasing one from an FBI undercover employee on June 19, 2015. back...
