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Samuel Rahamin Topaz, 21, was arrested at his Fort Lee, New Jersey, home in June
He pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support and resources to ISIS, prosecutors say
A 21-year-old New Jersey man pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiring to provide material support and resources to ISIS.
Authorities arrested Samuel Rahamin Topaz at his Fort Lee, New Jersey, home on Wednesday for providing “material support” to the terrorist organization. He appeared in a New Jersey court on Thursday afternoon.
Topaz, who is being held without bail, faces up to 20 years in prison under the plea agreement, according to federal prosecutors.
Topaz admitted in court that he had saved money to travel overseas to join ISIS, prosecutors said. He said he discussed his plans with three other men who also face federal terrorism charges: Nader Saadeh, Alaa Saadeh and Munther Omar Saleh.
Topaz said the four men watched ISIS videos, some of which showed the execution of non-Muslims, according to prosecutors.
On May 5, Nader Saadeh departed the United States with plans to travel overseas to join ISIS, prosecutors said. Topaz admitted in court that he and others planned to travel separately to meet Saadeh before joining ISIS.
After Nader Saadeh left the United States, Topaz met with Saleh and contacted Alaa Saadeh to discuss the plot, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors charge that Topaz hoped to travel overseas to join ISIS and discussed his plans with three other Americans, who are not named in the filed documents. Those communications – including plans to purchase plane tickets and attempts to “lay low” to avoid law enforcement – were intercepted by authorities.
Topaz’s attorney, Ian Hirsch, could not be reached for comment.