Alleged ISIS-Inspired Terror Plot Thwarted Day After 9/11 Anniversary: DOJ - Newsweek

A young Pennsylvania man was arrested one day after the 25th anniversary of 9/11 while allegedly plotting an attack on behalf of ISIS militants, federal authorities said Tuesday.

Jonathan Hunter Kramer, 21, of Valencia, Pennsylvania, was taken into custody by FBI agents on Saturday after he was tracked to a hotel, where investigators found three high-capacity rifle magazines and five boxes of ammunition. Authorities also seized a semiautomatic rifle and more ammunition, FBI and Department of Justice officials announced.

"As Americans observed the 25th anniversary of 9/11, our law enforcement partners were working to protect our country from the continued threat of terrorism," Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. "Their outstanding work thwarted this alleged attack before innocent lives could be lost. The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue anyone who seeks to terrorize the American people and bring them to justice."

Kramer had been known to FBI officials since 2023, when he was charged and later adjudicated delinquent by Pennsylvania authorities for his role in a plot to commit a mass casualty incident and for possessing child sexual abuse material.

Investigators received an anonymous tip regarding Kramer in mid-March upon his release from a juvenile detention facility in Pennsylvania, where he ordered "mysterious" packages and had connected with acquaintances from prior to his juvenile adjudication, federal prosecutors said.

Investigators later learned that Kramer had adopted an online persona, "Hamza Al Rashid," and claimed affiliation with ISIS, while offering to share explosive manuals. He also allegedly expressed his intent to prepare for his "mission" and claimed he was solely missing a "weapon," according to the DOJ.

The FBI said agents observed Kramer depart his home on Saturday while carrying a bag. He then traveled to a retail store, where federal prosecutors said he bought a disposable phone and later met an individual in a parking lot where he acquired a long black bag from the trunk of a vehicle.

Kramer then traveled to a hotel in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, and booked a room using cash. Witnesses later told investigators that his bag made a metallic clicking sound when he set it down. After checking into the room, Kramer traveled to a sporting goods store, where he was spotted by FBI agents at a gun counter.

FBI agents later approached Kramer when he returned to the hotel's parking lot. He allegedly had two bags from his purchase at the sporting goods store. He agreed to speak with agents, prompting the FBI to execute federal search warrants related to the hotel room and his residence.

Agents ultimately seized a semiautomatic rifle, five rifle magazines, a rifle bipod and scope, 190 rounds of ammunition, an entrenchment tool, roughly 30 knives, pepper spray and a prayer rug, federal prosecutors said. Investigators also allegedly found a handwritten note reading: "DoNt look For me[.] IDK what I did buT I cant live In constant Fear[.]"

FBI Director Kash Patel said Kramer's arrest demonstrates that federal authorities continue to focus investigative efforts on "stopping terrorists before they harm" American citizens.

"The subject in this case was allegedly plotting a violent attack in support of ISIS — engaging with ISIS propaganda online, building attack concepts, and repeatedly expressing extremist rhetoric — all while acquiring weapons believed to be in preparation of the attack," Patel said in a statement.

Kramer, who has been charged with receipt of a firearm knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that such firearm will be used to commit a federal crime of terrorism, made his initial court appearance on Monday. Federal prosecutors requested that he be held without bail until trial. It's unclear if he's hired an attorney who can comment on his behalf.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg said Kramer appeared to be preparing for a mass shooting and secured a rifle, as well as roughly 190 rounds of ammunition for his alleged "mission."

"His apparent ISIS inspiration and escalation toward violence show how close this country came to a devastating attack," Eisenberg said in a statement. "This arrest prevented what could have been a horrific tragedy."

A specific target for Kramer's alleged attack was not identified in court documents unsealed Tuesday.

FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Richard Evanchec said investigators continue to face an "elevated threat environment" from a variety of extremists decades after the attacks on September 11, 2001, which killed roughly 2,977 people.

"An extremely alarming threat to our community exists when an individual reportedly pledges allegiance to a foreign terrorist organization, seeks to turn that ideology into action, and makes final preparations for an attack," Evanchec said.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Jason Lemon and Sam Wilson.