Twin Cities Men, Terrorist Support, Minnesota 2015

Minneapolis, MN – In a shocking turn of events, three men from the Twin Cities area have been sentenced for providing material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Abdullahi Yusuf, 20, of Inver Grove Heights, Abdirizak Warsame, 21, of Eagan, and Zacharia Abdurahman, 21, of Columbia Heights, were found guilty of conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

According to court documents, Yusuf applied for an expedited U.S. Passport in April 2014, which he used to attempt to travel to Istanbul, Turkey, to join ISIL in May 2014. He was stopped at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport by federal agents and later pleaded guilty on February 26, 2015. Yusuf cooperated with the government and testified at the trial of three of his co-conspirators.

Warsame, on the other hand, participated in the conspiracy throughout 2014 and early 2015, serving briefly as the ’emir’ of the co-conspirators. He also helped unindicted co-conspirator Yusuf Jama obtain contact information to aid his joining ISIL in Syria. Warsame pleaded guilty on February 11, 2016, and cooperated with the government, testifying at the trial of three of his co-conspirators.

Abdurahman and three co-conspirators traveled by bus from Minneapolis to New York City’s JFK airport in November 2014, where they attempted to fly overseas to join ISIL in Syria. They were stopped from flying and questioned by federal agents before returning to Minnesota. Despite being stopped from traveling, Abdurahman and the co-conspirators continued to discuss and plan another attempt to travel to Syria to join ISIL. Abdurahman pleaded guilty on September 17, 2015.

The case was investigated by the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), which includes members from various law enforcement agencies, including the United States Marshals Service, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Winter, John Docherty, and Julie Allyn.

Defendant Information:

Abdullahi Yusuf, 20, Inver Grove Heights, MN, Convicted: Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, 1 count, Sentenced: Time already served, 20 years of supervised release.

Abdirizak Warsame, 21, Eagan, MN, Convicted: Conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, 1 count, Sentenced: 30 months in prison, 20 years of supervised release.

Zacharia Abdurahman, 21, Columbia Heights, MN, Convicted: Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, 1 count, Sentenced: 10 years in prison, 20 years of supervised release.

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