Syrian Man Pleads Guilty In Plot To Blow Up Pittsburgh Church

Pittsburgh PA

16 September, 2021

3:41 PM

Description

PITTSBURGH, PA — A Syrian refugee pleaded guilty Thursday to plotting to bomb a Pittsburgh church in 2019. Mustafa Mousab Alowemer, 23, of Northview Heights, will be sentenced in January after his guilty plea to one count of attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. Alowemer planned to blow up the Legacy International Worship Center on the city's North Side to support ISIS and inspire other ISIS supporters in the United States to commit similar acts of terrorism. Alowemer was aware that numerous people near the church could be killed by the explosion, federal authorities said. "Inspired by ISIS, Mustafa Alowemer devised and intended to carry out a deadly attack on a house of worship and its congregation," said Stephen R. Kaufman, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania. "If not for the tireless, multi-faceted investigation by the FBI and our partner agencies, the true depth of his determination to commit violence in the name of ISIS may not have been exposed until his deadly plans were achieved." According to court documents, Alowemer distributed multiple instructional documents related to the construction and use of explosives and improvised explosive devices to an individual he believed to be a fellow ISIS supporter. That person was an FBI agent. Alowemer purchased several items believing they were necessary to assemble explosive device he intended to detonate in the vicinity of the church. Alowemer faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both, and a lifetime term of supervised release. Be the first to know what's happening in your community and region. With a free Patch subscription, you'll always be up to date on local and state news: https://patch.com/subscribe.