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Khalil Abu-Rayyan (Fox 2 photo)
As crimes go, the federal charge seemed rather ordinary in a big city like Detroit: "Being an unlawful user of a controlled substance (marijuana) who possessed a firearm which traveled in interstate commerce."
Khalil Abu-Rayyan, 21, of Dearborn Heights was arrested this past week on the federal firearms/drug charge, and now faces a detention hearing in U.S. District Court in Detroit on Monday at 1 p.m. to determine if he can be freed before trial, court records show.
But the gun charge itself hardly tells the real story as to why the FBI has an interest in this case. An affidavit by Detroit FBI agent Alan K. Southard does. It's about terrorism, even though Abu-Rayyan faces no terrorism charges -- at least at this time.
The affidavit says that the FBI has been investigating Abu-Rayann since May of 2015 "regarding increasingly violent threats he has made to others about committing acts of terror and martyrdom -- including brutal acts against police officers, (Detroit) churchgoers and others -- on behalf of the foreign terrorist organization Islamic State of Iraq and Levant. This investigation has involved a number of investigative steps, including review of Abu-Rayyan's social media Postings, surveillance, and consensually monitored telephone conversations and electronic communications with an undercover employee."
The affidavit states that Abu-Rayyan bought a .22 caliber gun last Oct. 5 from a sporting goods store in Dearborn Heights. He had no concealed weapons permit.
Two days later, Detroit Police pulled him over for speeding. He was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon and possession of marijuana. He was later released on a bond.
On Nov. 15, he tried to buy another pistol at a different sporting goods store, the FBI affidavit said. Because of his pending case, he wasn't able to buy the second pistol.
On Nov. 17, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office issued a warrant charging him with state crimes: carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a controlled substance. He was arrested Nov. 30. He pleaded guilty to the marijuana charge and faces trial Feb. 16 on the gun charge -- separate from the federal charge.
In June 2015, the FBI reviewed his Twitter account and determined that Abu-Rayyan "had been re-tweeting, liking, and commenting on ISIL propaganda on his Twitter account as early as November, 2014."
On Feb. 19, 2015, the affidavit said, Abu-Rayyan posted a photo of three people wearing camouflage. One of those people was Abu-Rayann, who appears to be holding a semi-automatic pistol and hold his index finger vertical with his left hand, a symbol used by Isil.
In December 2015, Abu-Rayyan engaged in conversations with an undercover FBI employee, and over several weeks, the two had daily conversations using online social media, the affidavit said.
"During these conversations," the affidavit said, " Abu-Rayyan consistently expressed support for ISIL and repeatedly expressed his desire to commit a martyrdom operation." He also told the agent he had an AK-47 with a 40 round magazine.
"I tried to shoot up a church one day," he said. "I don't know the name of it, but it's close to my job. It's one of the biggest ones in Detroit. Ya, I had it planned out. I bought a bunch of bullets. I practiced a lot with it. I practiced reloading and unloading. But my dad searched my car one day and he found everything. He found the gun and the bullets and a mask I was going to wear."
He went on to say that he targeted the church because "it's easy, and a lot of people go there. Plus, people are not allowed to carry guns in church. Plus it would make the news. Everybody would've heard. Honestly, I regret not doing it. If I can't go do jihad at the Middle East, I would do my jihad over here." Authorities determined that the church he referred can hold up to 6,000 members.
Last month, around Jan. 21, he told the undercover agent that he wanted to kill the Detroit officer who arrested him in October. He said his trial in state court was delayed because the officer had a heart attack and was in the hospital.
He said he wanted to do a martyrdom operation at the hospital and kill the officer in the process.
