Washington state man pleads guilty of conspiracy to support ISIS

Saed Ali Mirreh, 21, entered the plea in US District Court in Seattle, according to First Assistant US Attorney Charles Neil Floyd. Mirreh was arrested at his Kent home on November 4, 2025, shortly before he was scheduled to leave the United States.

US District Judge Richard A. Jones scheduled sentencing for October 16, 2026. Mirreh faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.

Under the plea agreement, Mirreh admitted that he began communicating with co-conspirators by at least July 2025 about traveling through Turkey to Syria to join ISIS as fighters. Mirreh acknowledged that he knew ISIS had been designated as a foreign terrorist organization.

In late October 2025, Mirreh purchased a ticket to fly from Seattle to Istanbul on November 16, where he intended to meet other members of the conspiracy before continuing to Syria.

Those plans accelerated after members of the group living in Dearborn, Michigan, were arrested on October 31 over an alleged ISIS-inspired Halloween attack plot. Mirreh and alleged co-conspirator Tomas-Kaan Jimenez-Guzel moved their flights to November 5, but the FBI arrested Mirreh one day before his scheduled departure.

Federal authorities previously said Mirreh admitted after his arrest that he planned to travel to Syria and join ISIS as a fighter. Agents seized his passport, cellphone, and laptop from his home.

Mirreh was originally charged in New Jersey alongside Jimenez-Guzel, 19. His case was transferred earlier this month to the Western District of Washington.

According to prosecutors, communications among the conspirators included discussions about participating in “jihad,” physical training, firearms, improvised explosive devices, and methods for avoiding detection by law enforcement.

The broader investigation was connected to an alleged Halloween terror plot involving Dearborn residents Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud, both of whom were 20 when they were arrested. Authorities alleged the pair planned an ISIS-inspired mass shooting in the Detroit area and referred to the operation using the code word “pumpkin.”

Investigators said the Michigan suspects obtained AR-15-style rifles, shotguns, tactical vests, GoPro cameras, and more than 1,600 rounds of ammunition. They allegedly trained at shooting ranges and scouted LGBTQ bars in Ferndale, Michigan.

Previous court filings described Mirreh as the group’s “finance guy.” Prosecutors alleged that he raised thousands of dollars, communicated with extremists through encrypted applications, and helped coordinate funding and travel for individuals seeking to join ISIS overseas.

The FBI had been aware of Mirreh for more than two years before his arrest. Agents searched his Kent home in August 2023 after receiving information that he may have provided support to a person in Canada connected to terrorism charges. Mirreh, who was a minor at the time, admitted consuming ISIS propaganda and discussing a potential attack but denied that he intended to carry one out.

The FBI interviewed him again in January 2024. Investigators later contacted Meta in July 2025 regarding an Instagram account belonging to Mirreh that authorities said was being used to communicate with people associated with ISIS.

Mirreh’s plea agreement provides that he will not appeal any sentence of 20 years or less. The government similarly agreed not to appeal if Judge Jones imposes a sentence of no more than 20 years.