FBI arrests terrorist who planned a U.S.-based attack

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested a terrorist who was allegedly plotting an attack on U.S. soil. 

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas revealed as much in a press release that it published on Thursday.

The statement can be read in its entirety here.

The man who has been arrested is 28-year-old Anas Said.

Here is what we know:

The press release states that Said had ties to ISIS.

"According to court documents, multiple social media accounts linked to Said contained messages and posts that allegedly revealed that Said supported ISIS and the violent attacks carried out in its name," the statement reads.

It continues, "Law enforcement executed searches of Said and his residence, vehicle and electronic devices. According to court documents, analysis of the seized devices ultimately revealed Said’s activities relating to the creation and dissemination of propaganda on behalf of ISIS."

Accordingly, Said "has been indicted for attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization."

He is facing up to 20 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines. Said is in custody at the time of this writing. He is expected to make his first court appearance shortly.

Said confesses

More information about the situation has been provided, according to Fox News, by FBI Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams.

The outlet reports:

Williams said that while in custody, Said admitted to researching how to conduct an attack on local military recruiting centers, offering his home as sanctuary for ISIS operatives, bragging that he would commit a "9/11-style" attack if he had the resources and attempting to produce ISIS propaganda.

It is for this reason that the FBI's Houston, Texas, office put out a statement, saying, "We stopped a potential terrorist attack from happening right here in Houston! Any day we can publicly say that is a good day."

Said is being represented by Attorney Baldemar Zuniga, who has already spoken to the press about the situation. Zuniga said:

The indictment only alleges that [Said] supported a terrorist group through the production of videos and propaganda [not that he plotted terror acts.] Does it seem a bit excessive? Yes.

It has further been revealed that Said has been on the FBI's "radar" since at least 2017, after he purchased two stickers: "one containing an image of the Dome of the Rock2 with an ISIS flag overlaying the image, and another showing the white silhouette of a man holding a rifle with the caption, 'Winning the Islamic Nation.'"