Michigan man convicted for attempted support of ISIS, possession of explosives

A Michigan man has been convicted on federal terrorism charges after a jury found he attempted to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and illegally possessed a destructive device.

Aws Mohammed Naser, 37, formerly of Westland, MI was found guilty following a five-week trial in federal court. Jurors deliberated for approximately six hours before unanimously convicting him on both counts.

According to the Department of Justice, Naser’s support for ISIS spanned years and included attempts to travel overseas to join the terrorist organization, as well as efforts to build and deploy weapons on US soil after his travel plans were thwarted. “The trial proved that this defendant spent years trying to support ISIS — first by attempting to join its ranks overseas, then by turning to explosives and extremist networks on American soil,” said Sue J. Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “His relentless pursuit of terrorism posed a clear threat to our national security.”

US Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. for the Eastern District of Michigan described Naser as a “bombmaker and self-avowed ‘son of the Islamic State,’” adding that he turned his fight inward on the US after being blocked from leaving the country. “Naser tried to travel and fight for ISIS overseas but was turned away. So, Naser gathered drones and built a bomb in his basement.”

Evidence presented at trial showed that Naser had become radicalized and frequently shared Salafi-Jihadist ideology online, the DOJ said. He traveled to Iraq in 2012 with Russell Dennison, an American extremist who later joined ISIS in Syria. While Dennison remained in the Middle East, Naser returned to the U.S. and began planning how to join him — including attempting to travel to Syria twice, once through Detroit and again via Chicago. In the second attempt, Naser robbed a gas station to fund his journey but was again denied boarding and ultimately arrested and convicted for the robbery, serving three years in prison.

Following his release, Naser shifted his focus to domestic efforts in support of ISIS. He created anonymous online accounts, joined ISIS-affiliated chatrooms, and consumed jihadi propaganda. Prosecutors said he solicited bomb-making instructions and experimented with both explosives and drones. A 2017 search of his home by the FBI found a destructive device ready to be easily assembled.

“Naser sought to join a terrorist organization and attempted to travel to Syria, multiple times, to join ISIS’s violent attacks against the US,” said Assistant FBI Director Don M. Holstead.

Naser now faces up to 20 years in federal prison for the terrorism-related charge and up to 15 years for possession of a destructive device. Sentencing will be determined by a federal judge.