US citizen arrested before flying to Syria to join ISIS

A US citizen has been arrested in Queens, New York for trying to pass information to ISIS US Department of Justice said on Wednesday.

Syed Aman, a resident of Nassau County, New York, planned to travel to Syria and join the Islamic State terrorist organization. Instead, he was arrested on John F. Kennedy International Airport before he had a chance to board his plane.

A criminal complaint was filed against Aman this week in Brooklyn, alleging that between 2023 and 2024 he displayed his support for ISIS on social media, sent money to a person he believed to be directly connected to the terrorist organization, and planned to fly out of the U.S. to wage war in favor of ISIS.

This information has been gathered since early October through an undercover source working with the FBI.

According to the complaint, Aman tried twice to fly to Middle Eastbut his credit card company blocked the transactions. Only on the third attempt to buy a ticket from New York to Bangladesh did the deal go through.

(Credit: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey)

An FBI source said Aman said he would drive with a steel pen to protect himself if arrested and that he would attack law enforcement. During the detention, the indicated pen was seized along with the belongings.