WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Two men have been indicted for conspiring to carry out a terrorist attack in New York City on behalf of the ISIL, the US Department of Justice said in a press release.
“According to the indictment, Munther Omar Saleh and Fareed Mumuni conspired to provide material support to ISIL and devised a plan to conduct an attack in New York,” US Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Carlin said on Tuesday.
Carlin noted that during the arrest, Mumuni stabbed a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent numerous times.
“[B]ut thankfully, the agent’s body armor protected him from the defendant’s attack, and the defendant was safely apprehended by law enforcement,” he added.
Both men have plotted to use a pressure cooker bomb to carry out a terrorist attack in New York on behalf of the Islamic State, according to the release. Mumuni was also charged with attempted murder of federal officers.
Four days later, the FBI arrested Mumuni while executing a search warrant at his residence in Staten Island.
“As alleged in the indictment, both Munther Omar Saleh and Fareed Mumuni demonstrated their support for ISIL by attacking the law enforcement officers,” Acting US Attorney Kelly Currie of the Eastern District of New York said.
They will now face “the full force of justice” in federal court, she added.
Saleh and Mumuni are scheduled to be arraigned on August 20, 2015.
If convicted, Mumuni faces a maximum prison sentence of 85 years, while Saleh faces a sentence of 65 years.
According to US intelligence, up to 30,000 foreign fighters have joined the ISIL in its fight against the government forces in Syria and Iraq.
