Overview
According to court documents, New York-based Mufid Elfgeeh sought to facilitate the travel of jihadists to join ISIS in Syria. He also purchased firearms and a silencer, allegedly with the intent to carry out violent attacks against U.S. military servicemen.“Rochester Man Indicted on Charges of Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS, Attempting to Kill U.S. Soldiers, and Possession of Firearms and Silencers,” FBI, September 16, 2014, https://www.fbi.gov/buffalo/press-releases/2014/rochester-man-indicted-on-charges-of-attempting-to-provide-material-support-to-isis-attempting-to-kill-u.s.-soldiers-and-possession-of-firearms-and-silencers. He lived in Rochester, New York, while planning these activities.“Rochester, N.Y., man charged with trying to help Islamic State,” Reuters, September 17, 2014, http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/17/us-usa-crime-islamicstate-idUSKBN0HC01320140917.
Elfgeeh was arrested in late March 2014. He has since been charged on seven counts, including three counts of attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS. The seven charges against Elfgeeh also include one count of attempting to murder U.S. military servicemen, one count of possessing firearms with a silencer to further a violent crime, and two counts of possessing illegal firearm silencers.“Rochester Man Indicted on Charges of Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS, Attempting to Kill U.S. Soldiers, and Possession of Firearms and Silencers,” FBI, September 16, 2014, https://www.fbi.gov/buffalo/press-releases/2014/rochester-man-indicted-on-charges-of-attempting-to-provide-material-support-to-isis-attempting-to-kill-u.s.-soldiers-and-possession-of-firearms-and-silencers.
Elfgeeh is a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Yemen. He owned a pizza shop in Rochester, New York.Gary Craig, “Rochester terrorist Mufid Elfgeeh guilty of recruiting for ISIS,” Democrat & Chronicle, December 17, 2016, http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2015/12/17/alleged-terrorist-scheduled-plea-mufid-elfgeeh/77471906/.
Elfgeeh pled guilty to “attempting to provide material support” to ISIS through the recruitment of a local man and a man from Yemen in December 2015. He agreed to a 22 ½-year sentence as part of a plea agreement. Gary Craig, “Rochester terrorist Mufid Elfgeeh guilty of recruiting for ISIS,” Democrat & Chronicle, December 17, 2016, http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2015/12/17/alleged-terrorist-scheduled-plea-mufid-elfgeeh/77471906/. Elfgeeh received the sentence on March 17, 2016. It is the harshest sentence to date for somebody convicted of providing material support to ISIS.Gary Craig, “Local terrorist Mufid Elfgeeh gets 22 years,” Democrat & Chronicle, March 17, 2016, http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2016/03/17/mufid-elfgeeh-sentenced-isis-isil-islamic-state-recruiting-rochester/81901794/.
Associated Groups
- Extremist entity
- ISIS
- Read Threat Report
- Type(s) of Organization:
- Insurgent, territory-controlling, religious, terrorist, violent
- Ideologies and Affiliations:
- Islamist, jihadist, pan-Islamist, Salafist, takfiri
- Position(s):
- Facilitator
ISIS is a violent jihadist group based in Iraq and Syria. The group has declared wilayas (provinces) in Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the North Caucasus. ISIS has also waged attacks in Turkey, Lebanon, France, Belgium, Iraq, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Tunisia, and Kuwait.
History
Daily Dose
Extremists: Their Words. Their Actions.
Fact:
On October 7, 2023, Hamas invaded southern Israel where, in the space of eight hours, hundreds of armed terrorists perpetrated mass crimes of brutality, rape, and torture against men, women and children. In the biggest attack on Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust, 1,200 were killed, and 251 were taken hostage into Gaza—where 101 remain. One year on, antisemitic incidents have increased by record numbers.