Man, 19, accused of threat to bomb UH
A 19-year-old Richmond man who authorities said described himself as an ISIS recruiter is accused of making a bomb threat against the University of Houston during a Zoom lecture, federal prosecutors said.
Ibraheem Ahmed Al Bayati was taken into custody Friday and appeared in federal court Tuesday on charges of making threats to destroy by means of fire or explosives and making a threat over interstate commerce, according to the Southern District of Texas U.S. Attorney’s office.
Al Bayati joined a university Zoom lecture Wednesday under the name Abu Qital al Jihadi al Mansur, officials said. He is not a University of Houston student, but he gained access to the lecture when a student shared the link, said university spokesperson Shawn Lindsey.
According to the criminal complaint, Al Bayati interrupted the lecture and said, “What does any of this have to do with the fact that UH is about to get bombed in a few days?”
In Arabic, he then said, “Islamic State will remain,” in reference to the foreign terrorist group known as ISIS. He repeated the phrase with his index finger raised and left the call “to the gasps of students,” officials said.
The index finger gesture is “sometimes an indicator of radical Islamic ideology,” according to the complaint.
During an interview with an FBI special agent, Al Bayati said “the whole thing was a joke” devised by him and a friend, according to court documents.
A phone search showed that Al Bayati’s friend texted him a link to the Zoom class and wrote: “Say some Arabic s—— and leave lmaooooo.”
Al Bayati described himself as a known ISIS recruiter, according to court documents. He is also accused of seeking ISIS supporters on social media and helping an individual make a “pledge” to join ISIS.
Al Bayati made his first court appearance Tuesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sam Sheldon. The accused man sat at a wood table with his arms shackled in front of him while the court appointed David Adler to be his attorney. Adler did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A detention and probable cause hearing was scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday. Alamdar Hamdani, the lead prosecutor on the case, said the government will review three phones and a laptop to determine if Al Bayati is a danger. Hamdani will call a witness to present more evidence at the next hearing.
If convicted on the bomb threat charge, Al Bayati faces up to 10 years in prison. The interstate commerce threat charge carries a maximum five year sentence.
The FBI conducted the investigation.
A separate case involving a University of Houston student linked to ISIS drew controversy last year.
Asher Abid Khan completed an 18-month prison term after he was convicted of plotting to join ISIS and recruiting a friend to join with him. Khan backed out but his friend died in ISIS training in Syria.
Attorneys with the Justice Department said Khan’s unusually light sentence was an “enormous” error, but a Houston federal judge decided in December that Khan need not serve additional time because he had shown remorse.