6 arrests linked to U.S. youths trying to wage jihad
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Six arrests have been made in connection with a terrorism investigation into youth who have traveled or tried to travel to Syria to fight with militants, including the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), federal authorities said.
A spokesman for the Minnesota U.S. Attorney's Office said the arrests were made Sunday in Minneapolis and San Diego but there is no threat to public safety. Spokesman Ben Petok did not give details about the charges.
The U.S. Attorney's Office and the FBI planned a news conference Monday to announce details.
The six people taken into custody may be connected to the on-going investigation of Twin Cities residents traveling to Syria to support ISIS over the last year, according to the source, CBS Minnesota reported. Four Minnesotans have already been charged in connection with supporting terror groups in Syria, including ISIS.
Kyle Loven, spokesman for the Minneapolis office of the FBI, said six people were arrested but gave no further details. An FBI spokesman in San Diego referred questions to Loven.
Authorities say a handful of Minnesota residents have traveled to Syria to fight with militants within the last year. At least one has died while fighting for ISIS.
Since 2007, more than 22 young Somali men have also traveled from Minnesota to Somalia to join the terrorist group al-Shabaab.
One man, 19-year-old Hamza Ahmed, had been stopped at a New York City airport in November as he and three others were attempting to travel to Syria. Ahmed has been indicted on charges of lying to the FBI during a terrorism investigation, conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State group, and attempting to provide material support. He has pleaded not guilty.
But there have been no public charges filed against his three companions, and little information had been released about them. An FBI affidavit said they are all between the ages of 19 and 20 and live in the Twin Cities.
CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues says cases like this highlight the ongoing threat of home-grown terrorism and so-called "lone wolf" attacks. In the last eight months, there have been at least 20 terrorism-related arrests in the U.S.