Ex-Michigan Army National Guard member accused of planning mass shooting at Army base for ISIS

The Justice Department disclosed on Wednesday the arrest of a former Michigan Army National Guard member implicated in the planning of a mass shooting at a military base for the Islamic State terrorist group.

Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, 19 years old, was apprehended after he journeyed close to the U.S. Army’s Tank-Automotive & Armaments Command (TACOM) facility at the Detroit Arsenal in Warren, Michigan. Officials stated that Said “launched his drone in support of the attack plan.”

“I recommend everyone have approximately seven magazines because you don’t want to be in there and run out of ammo,” Said purportedly advised an undercover FBI agent leading up to the thwarted scheme, as outlined in a criminal complaint.

Said is now facing charges of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and distributing information related to a destructive device. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years per count if convicted. 

Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said is seen posing in front of an ISIS flag, according to the Justice Department. (Justice Department)

The criminal complaint stated that around June 2024, Said started communicating with an undercover FBI agent whom he had thought was a fellow ISIS supporter. 

“During the course of their interactions, which were audio- and/or video-recorded, Said described his longstanding desire to engage in violent jihad, either by traveling to ISIS-held territory abroad or by carrying out an attack in the United States,” the complaint said. 

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CONTENT WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE

“On July 18, 2024, FBI agents executed a search warrant for Said’s iPhone by performing a covert search of that device… when SAID provided it to personnel with the Michigan Army National Guard prior to boarding a military aircraft. During that search, FBI agents identified a Facebook message exchange (in Arabic) that took place on or about October 5, 2023, between Said and another Facebook user located in the Palestinian territories,” the complaint continued. 

Said is pictured showing an undercover FBI agent the planned site of the attack, according to the Justice Department. (Justice Department)

“In that Facebook message exchange, Said stated, ‘I want to go for Jihad,’ and the other Facebook user replied, ‘Talk to me on Telegram.’ Agents also determined during the search that Said was a member of multiple channels in the encrypted messaging application Telegram, one of which contained videos and images with ISIS flags,” it also said. 

The complaint noted that Said enlisted in the Michigan Army National Guard in September 2022 and attended basic training at Fort Moore in Georgia. He later reported to the Michigan Army National Guard Taylor Armory before being discharged around December 2024. 

The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is leading the investigation into the case.