A 21-year-old Pennsylvania man is accused of planning an attack on a local church to inspire Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham followers.
Mustafa Alowemer was charged July 17 with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to IS and two counts of distributing information relating to an explosive, destructive device, or weapon of mass destruction, according to the Justice Department.
The indictment and the complaint allege Alowemer plotted to bomb the Legacy International Worship Center, a Christian church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to encourage other IS supporters to carry out similar attacks. He shared several documents on how to make and use explosives with an undercover FBI agent he thought was a fellow IS supporter.
He was arrested June 19 after providing undercover agents with Google satellite maps identifying the church and routes of arrival and escape and a plan detailing his plot.
Alowemer was born in Daraa, Syria, and came to the U.S. in August 2016 as a refugee.