Munir Abdulkader, 22, of West Chester, Ohio, is behind bars for 240 months after admitting he plotted to murder a U.S. military employee and launch a violent assault on a Cincinnati-area police station in the name of ISIL. The federal sentence, handed down by U.S. District Judge Michael R. Barrett, includes lifetime supervised release—marking a hard stop to a homegrown terror scheme that escalated from online radicalization to armed preparation.
Abdulkader pleaded guilty to attempting to kill U.S. officers and employees, providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. His plan was chillingly specific: kill a military base employee at home, record the execution for an ISIL propaganda video, then storm a local police station armed with an AK-47 and Molotov cocktails. The attack was not a vague fantasy—it was in active preparation.
Between July 2014 and April 2015, Abdulkader used Twitter to openly express support for ISIL. He coordinated with a Confidential Human Source (CHS) about traveling to Syria to join the terror group as a fighter. He obtained a passport, saved money, and researched travel logistics—but shifted course in late April 2015 when concerns over detection arose. Instead of leaving the country, he stayed—and turned his sights to domestic violence.
In May 2015, Abdulkader began communicating electronically with one or more individuals overseas he believed to be ISIL members, including the now-deceased Junaid Hussein. Hussein, a known Syria-based terrorist, directed Abdulkader to carry out a violent attack inside the U.S. The two discussed plans to abduct and execute a named military employee, film it, and use it to fuel jihadist recruitment.
Abdulkader didn’t just talk—he acted. He conducted surveillance on a police station, received a targeting package on the intended victim, visited shooting ranges, trained with firearms, and purchased an AK-47 in a controlled transaction with the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. On May 21, 2015, he took possession of the weapon and was arrested moments later. The arrest crushed the plot before it could turn bloody.
Charged by criminal complaint on May 22, 2015, and later by bill of information on March 2, 2016, Abdulkader entered his guilty plea on March 24, 2016. Court documents remained sealed until July. Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary McCord stated flatly: “Using social media to communicate with the now-deceased Syria-based ISIL terrorist Junaid Hussain, Abdulkader coordinated and planned violent murders of military members and police officers.” The message from federal prosecutors is clear—domestic terror plots inspired by foreign enemies will be met with maximum consequences.
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Key Facts
- State: Ohio
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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