A young woman with autism was deceived by FBI agents when she tried to support an international terrorist organization.
Humzah Mashkoor is 18 years old and spoke to American agents for several years because he believed they were members of the Islamic State.
It all started in 2021 when this young man used his social networks to support ISIS by sharing sensitive videos of executed people and criminal acts.
At just 16 years old, this young man performed as Hamzah Afhgan, using his first name and his family's country of origin, Afghanistan.
FBI agents began tracking him, and four undercover agents contacted him, posing as members of the Islamic State.
The FBI tricked and captured a young autistic man so that he would not join terrorism. Photo: AFP
Over time, they gained their trust, but wanted to find out how committed they were to this terrorist organization.
The young man faces 20 years in prison
The young man was born in the USA and confessed that he wanted to travel to Afghanistan to visit relatives.
However, the agents were surprised when he told them that he was willing to do anything to join this terrorist organization.
“I just want to be deployed as quickly as possible. Weapon attacks, I have no training, when I was younger I had some practice,” Humzah said.
But things just got out of hand when the young man took an oath to join IS in October 2023.
The undercover agents continued the conversation and Humzah told them that he wanted to marry a young woman who shared his ideas and that he was willing to donate all of his cryptocurrencies to the Islamic State.
There was only one obstacle for the young man: he was still a minor. Nevertheless, he planned a trip to the Middle East in December 2023, when he turned 18.
So FBI agents had to intervene and arrested the autistic young man on December 18th at Denver International Airport before he boarded a plane.
“Mashkoor traveled to the United Arab Emirates, where he planned to remain until he moved on to Afghanistan or Syria to serve as an ISIS fighter,” Colorado prosecutors said.
The judiciary accuses him of trying to support an international terrorist organization.
However, at a hearing, Humzah's relatives revealed that he suffered from autism and mental difficulties.
The judge in the case acknowledged that the autism diagnosis will not go unnoticed in the decision, but that he could face 20 years in prison if found guilty.
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