A planned assault on a United States Army installation has been foiled, according to the Department of Justice.
The DOJ announced Wednesday that 19-year-old Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, a Melvindale, Michigan resident, was arrested for plotting to carry out a terror attack against a military base.
The target of the alleged plot was the U.S. Army’s Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) center at the Detroit Arsenal.
“TACOM, a Major Subordinate Command of Army Materiel Command, manages the Army’s ground equipment supply chain, which constitutes about 60 percent of the Army’s total equipment,” the command’s website explains.
“If a Soldier drives it, shoots it, wears it or eats it, we sustain it.”
Authorities say Said, a former soldier in the Michigan Army National Guard, wanted to commit the terror attack in the name of the ISIS.
According to a criminal complaint cited by the DOJ, Said met with two undercover law enforcement officers and explained his plans for a mass shooting at the command facility.
The undercover officers played along.
Said then allegedly provided armor-piercing ammunition and magazines. The complaint says he also trained the officers in firearms handling and improvised incendiary device construction.
Authorities say he also used a drone to reconnoiter TACOM and the surrounding area.
Justice Department officials vow that Said faces the full force of the law.
“This defendant is charged with planning a deadly attack on a U.S. military base here at home for ISIS,” DOJ National Security Division chief Sue Bai said.
“We will not hesitate to bring the full force of the Department to find and prosecute those who seek to harm our men and women in the military and to protect all Americans.”
Commanding officer of Army Counterintelligence Command, Brig. Gen. Rhett R. Cox, said the arrest of the former soldier is a “sobering reminder” of what is at stake.
“We urge all soldiers to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to their chain of command,” he said, “as the safety and security of our Army and our nation depends on our collective efforts to prevent insider threats.”
Said was arrested on Tuesday, the day marked for the planned assault on TACOM, shortly after launching his drone near the facility.
Said is currently being charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terror organization and distributing information on a destructive device.
The charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years.
