WAYNE, N.J. — A 22-year-old New Jersey man who allegedly plotted attacks on a Jewish place of worship and a National Guard location in support of ISIS was charged with attempting to provide material support and resources to the designated foreign terrorist organization, the Department of Justice announced.
Mohamed Sagha of Wayne was charged by complaint with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. He made his initial appearance in federal court and was ordered detained. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and a term of life of supervised release.
“As alleged, the defendant sought to support ISIS and expressed interest in violence directed at targets within the United States, including places of worship,” said U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer for the District of New Jersey. “This Office will continue working relentlessly with our law enforcement partners to identify, disrupt, and prosecute individuals who support terrorism and threaten the safety of our communities.”
According to court documents, Sagha participated from approximately December 2025 to June 2026 in online chat groups where ISIS supporters discussed potential attacks on targets within the United States, including places of worship. In or around October 2025, he met a confidential human source online whom he believed to be a member of ISIS. In conversations with the source, Sagha expressed intent to assist another member of an ISIS-supporters chat group with an attack on a place of worship and said he was contemplating carrying out an attack of his own — possibly on a National Guard location or a Jewish place of worship. He shared images and videos of both locations with the source, stating they were near his residence in Wayne.
The confidential source repeatedly held himself out as an ISIS fighter, sending Sagha photographs from purported ISIS territory in Syria, including images of the source holding an ISIS flag and what appeared to be an AK-47-style assault rifle. Sagha repeatedly expressed a desire to travel to ISIS territory and made an unsuccessful attempt to do so in early March 2026.
Between May 31 and June 2, Sagha and the source discussed providing a Virtual Private Network to ISIS fighters referred to as “brothers.” Sagha ultimately purchased a VPN, sent it to the source — whom he believed to be a member of a terrorist organization — and explained how to use it. Federal prosecutors said VPN technology enables users to conceal online activities, mask locations and identities, and communicate with greater anonymity, assisting a foreign terrorist organization’s efforts to evade detection.
“The defendant allegedly wanted to attack targets in the United States in support of ISIS and its hateful ideology, but the FBI detected and put a stop to his violent plans,” said Assistant Director Donald Holstead of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division. “This should be a stark reminder to the American people of the FBI’s resolve to pursue anyone who tries to harm Americans and provide material support to terrorist organizations, and we will work with our Justice Department partners to make sure they face justice.”
The investigation was conducted by the FBI Newark Division under Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy, the New York City Police Department under Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch, and the Wayne Police Department under Chief Joseph Rooney. The government is represented by Senior National Security Counsel Sammi Malek and Trial Attorneys Justin Sher and Jay Rezai of the DOJ’s Counterterrorism Section. Sagha is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty; a detention hearing and further proceedings are expected in the coming weeks in federal court in New Jersey.