Man charged with plotting NYC mass shooting
A Pakistani man has been arrested in Canada and accused of plotting a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn on the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that sparked the latest conflict in the Middle East. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland says Muhammad Shahzeb Khan attempted to travel from Canada, where he lives, to New York City with the goal of slaughtering as many Jewish people as possible in the name of ISIS.
NEW YORK – A man has been arrested in Canada in connection with a plot to carry out a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn on the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in support of ISIS, according to federal authorities.
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, also known as Shahzeb Jadoon, was charged with attempting to provide material support to the terrorist group ISIS after he allegedly planned to attack a Jewish center on October 7, 2024. Khan was arrested on September 4 while attempting to cross the U.S.-Canada border.
The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that Khan, who had been residing in Canada, had been communicating with undercover law enforcement officers about his plan to carry out the attack. He reportedly targeted the Jewish community and sought to obtain AR-style rifles, ammunition, and other equipment to carry out the attack.
Khan intended to commit the act on the one-year anniversary of the 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel, according to officials.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland praised the investigative work of the FBI and Canadian law enforcement for preventing the attack, stating, “Jewish communities — like all communities in this country — should not have to fear that they will be targeted by a hate-fueled terrorist attack.”
In conversations with two undercover law enforcement officers, he said he was trying start a “real offline cell” of ISIS in order to carry out attacks against “Israeli Jewish chabads” in America. Khan said he and another ISIS supporter based in the U.S. needed to obtain AR-style assault rifles, ammunition and other materials, according to the Justice Department.
Khan had allegedly boasted that New York City was the “perfect” target because of its large Jewish population, and he had provided detailed plans of the intended attack to undercover agents. He reportedly said the plan could result in the “largest attack on U.S. soil since 9/11.”
Khan also provided details about how he would cross the border from Canada and said he was considering conducting the attacks on either the Oct. 7 anniversary or on Oct. 11, which is the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, authorities said.
It was unclear if Khan has a lawyer, where in Canada he was being held and when he may be brought to the U.S. to face the charges. There was no listing for the case in the online federal court system.
Edward Kim, a spokesperson for the Manhattan federal prosecutor’s office, which is handling the case, deferred to Canadian authorities, who didn’t immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
With the Associated Press.
