Breaking: FBI arrests three men in Michigan over links to ISIS

The three men were arrested Monday afternoon for “conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, namely the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS),” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan. The men face a jail sentence of up to 20 years for the conspiracy charge.

Muse Abdikadir Muse (Muse Muse) was arrested by members of the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) at the Gerald R. Ford Airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Muse was on his way to check in to fly to a couple of destinations before ultimately arriving in Mogadishu, Somalia. His co-conspirators Mohamud Abdikadir Muse (Mohamud Muse), and Mohamed Salat Haji (Haji) were arrested shortly thereafter.

All three men were born in Kenya, but Haji is a naturalized U.S. citizen; and brothers Muse Muse and Mohamud Muse acquired citizenship as children through their parents’ naturalization.

According to the complaint affidavit, Muse Muse booked tickets from Grand Rapids to Mogadishu with the ultimate goal to join ISIS in Somalia. Mohamed Muse and Haji aided him with the purchase of the tickets, with the full knowledge of his true purpose to join and fight for ISIS. Additionally, all three men recorded videos pledging allegiance to the Islamic State.

Muse Muse and Haji had also discussed in private the desire to join IS and kill unbelievers, according to the affidavit. If they failed to travel and join the group, they were prepared to run over people in the U.S., and martyr themselves in the process.

After the arrests, federal agents carried out searches in a house shared by Muse Muse and Mohamed Muse.

These arrests come a week after the deadly Al-Shabab attack in Nairobi, Kenya and an ongoing battle between ISIS and Al-Shabab in Somalia. At the moment, there are no arrests made in Mogadishu in connection with these three men.