Texas Terrorist Attack: Arizona Man Indicted for Allegedly Helping Plan Attack on Anti-Islam Cartoon Contest
A grand jury indicted a third suspect for allegedly helping two gunmen carry out a terrorist attack in Texas in May.
The incident occurred after Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi drove from Phoenix to Garland, Texas to attack an anti-Islamic drawing contest of the Prophet Mohammed. After they open fired outside of the provocative contest, they wounded a security guard before they were instantly shot and killed by police, reported CNN.
Officials believe that Abdul Malik Abdul Kareem had ties to the two gunmen and was involved in their planned terror attack.
In the federal indictment, which was filed in court last Wednesday, the grand jury charged Kareem with conspiracy, interstate transportation of firearms and making false statements to investigators. According to authorities, Kareem, who also goes by the name Decarus Thomas, provided firearms to the gunmen, in addition to hosting them and other unnamed people inside his home to plan the trip to Garland for the attack.
The indictment states that back in January, Kareem allegedly gave weapons to Simpson and Soofi, who were armed with four handguns, two semiautomatic rifles and hundreds of rounds of ammunition, according to police.
Kareem is also accused of traveling "to remote desert areas near Phoenix, Arizona, to practice shooting," reports CNN.
The indictment continues stating that Kareem "did knowingly and intentionally transport firearms and ammunition" across state lines knowing that they may be used to commit murder in Texas.
This indictment also suggests that "others known and unknown to the grand jury began a plot to disrupt the contest," reports The Washington Post.
Just days after the attack, officials say that Kareem lied to the FBI about having prior knowledge of the planned attack and the cartoon contest. He also allegedly said that that Simpson and Soofi did not ask him to participate.
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