Afghans in Oklahoma have been accused of planning an Election Day attack in the US on behalf of a group of Islamic states.
Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, pleaded guilty to two crimes. They offered conspiracy and support to Islamic state groups and attempted to receive firearms to commit federal crimes of terrorism. Islamic states are designated by the United States as foreign terrorist organizations.
Tawedi faces up to 35 years in prison.
“The defendant admitted that he planned and acquired a firearm to carry out a violent terrorist attack on Election Day 2024, and the plot was detected and confused through the good work of the FBI and our partners,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement.
A phone message was left to request comment from Tawhedi’s attorney Craig Hoehns.
According to court documents, Tawedy lived in Oklahoma City last year when he targeted a large crowd by obtaining two AK-47-style rifles and 500 rounds of ammunition. Authorities said they conspired with several people, including his brother-in-law Abdullah Haji Zada, for several months to plan the attack.
Zada, then 17, was charged as an adult in April and pleaded guilty. He has faced up to 15 years in prison.
Tawedi arrived in the United States on a special immigration visa in September 2021 shortly after Kabul’s capital Afghanistan was captured by the Taliban. At the time of his arrest on October 7th, Tawedi was on parole while his immigration status was pending, according to the Justice Department. His parole status was subsequently revoked.
FBI agents had previously testified that Tawedi, who worked as a ride-share driver and working in a car shop, was under surveillance more than a month before his arrest.
