Afghan national was planning ISIS-inspired attack on Election Day, federal prosecutors say

Federal prosecutors have accused a 27-year-old Afghan citizen of conspiring with ISIS and stockpiling weapons to launch an Election Day attack in the US.

Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma was allegedly planning to liquidate his family’s assets and sell his family’s home, resettle family members overseas, and buy up AK-47 rifles and ammunition “to stage a violent attack in the United States in the name of and on behalf of ISIS,” according to court documents unsealed on Tuesday.

According to a criminal complaint, Tawhedi and a co-conspirator, who is a minor, met with an FBI informant in Oklahoma to buy two AK-47s, 10 magazines and 500 rounds of ammunition.

They were then arrested on October 7.

In communications reviewed by FBI agents and attached in the criminal complaint, Tawhedi allegedly said he planned for an Election Day attack, then told agents after his arrest that the attack was designed to target large gatherings of people, during which he and his co-conspirator were expected to die as martyrs.

Before his arrest, Tawhedi — who entered the US on a special immigrant visa in 2021— had viewed ISIS propaganda and sent money to an organization that “fronts for and funnels money to ISIS,” according to prosecutors.

He also performed Google searches for “how to access washington dc cameras” and state-level gun restrictions, including which states have open-carry laws, according to the affidavit.

Tawhedi also bought one-way airfare for his wife and child to Kabul, according to prosecutors.

He was charged with conspiring and attempting to provide material support to ISIS, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, and receiving a firearm to be used to commit a felony or a federal crime of terrorism,