A 20-year-old Pakistani national residing in Canada has been arrested for allegedly plotting a terrorist attack on a Jewish center in New York City, according to a press release from the US Department of Justice's Office of Public Affairs.
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, also known as Shahzeb Jadoon, was apprehended on September 4 in Canada following a complaint filed in the Southern District of New York. He faces charges of attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization.
Breaking 🚨 - the DOJ has charged Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, a 20-year-old Pakistani citizen, with plotting to travel to NYC to carry out a mass shooting against Jewish people on the one year anniversary of 10/7.
AG Merrick Garland: Khan's stated goal was to kill as many Jews as… pic.twitter.com/cRYTj5V5Eo
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) September 6, 2024
Attorney General Merrick Garland stated, "The defendant is alleged to have planned a terrorist attack in New York City around October 7 of this year with the stated goal of slaughtering, in the name of ISIS, as many Jewish people as possible." Garland expressed gratitude to Canadian law enforcement partners for their swift action in the case.
FBI Director Christopher Wray emphasized the severity of the alleged plot, saying, "The defendant was allegedly determined to kill Jewish people here in the United States, nearly one year after Hamas' horrific attack on Israel." Wray affirmed the FBI's commitment to investigating and holding accountable those who seek to commit violence in support of terrorist organizations.
According to the complaint, Khan had been communicating with undercover law enforcement officers since November 2023, expressing his support for ISIS and distributing propaganda materials. He allegedly planned to use automatic and semi-automatic weapons to carry out a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn.
Khan reportedly told the undercover officers that he intended to create "a real offline cell" of ISIS supporters for a "coordinated assault" using AR-style rifles. He emphasized the significance of October 7 and October 11, 2024 as potential dates for the attack because "Oct. 7 they will surely have some protests and Oct. 11 is Yom Kippur."
🚨BREAKING: Illegal Immigrant Caught Planning "The Largest Terror Attack on U.S. Soil Since 9/11" ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/zJjUWuLoLm
— Matt Wallace (@MattWallace888) September 7, 2024
The suspect allegedly changed his target location from another US city to New York City in August, boasting that "New York is perfect to target Jews" due to its large Jewish population. Khan purportedly proclaimed, "We are going to NYC to slaughter them," and sent a photograph of the specific area inside the targeted location where he planned to carry out the attack.
Khan repeatedly urged the undercover officers to acquire weapons and equipment for the attack, including "Some good hunting [knives] so we can slit their throats." He allegedly stated, "If we succeed with our plan, this would be the largest attack on US soil since 9/11."
On September 4, Khan attempted to reach the US-Canada border using three separate cars before being stopped near Ormstown, Canada, approximately 12 miles from the border.
If convicted, Khan faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The FBI's New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles Field Offices are investigating the case, with the Department of Justice seeking Khan's extradition from Canada.
