ATLANTA — A criminal complaint from the U.S. Attorney's Office outlines in disturbing detail a 21-year-old Georgia man's alleged plot to carry out a "mass casualty" attack on the White House and other popular locations in Washington, D.C.
U.S. Attorney B.J. Pak made the announcement of their arrest of 21-year-old Hasher Taheb, from Cumming, Georgia from the steps of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building in Downtown Atlanta, Wednesday.
The 12-page document from the U.S. District Court outlines the details of Taheb's alleged plot - including the types of weapons and his plan to be a martyr as a result of the attack.
According to the affidavit, local law enforcement went to the FBI after a community member raised concerns about Taheb in March 2018, noting that he had become "radicalized, changed his name and made plans to travel abroad." That's when the Atlanta Joint Terrorism Task Force stepped in and put in motion a plan to catch Taheb.
According to the complaint, undercover agents from the FBI first made contact with Taheb last fall after he listed his car in an online ad. During an October meeting, the 21-year-old told one of the undercover agents he planned to sell his car to fund a trip overseas, and expressed a desire to become a martyr through jihad, which Taheb described as "the best deed in Islam."
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On Dec. 2, 2018, Taheb arranged a meeting with both undercover agents, during which he said that they would be able to do more damage if they stayed in the United States. The complaint states Taheb explained he wanted to carry out an attack on the U.S. against well-known targets, like the White House and the Statue of Liberty.
The complaint explains how Taheb provided the undercover agents with hand-drawn diagrams of the ground floor of the White House West Wing, and tasked the two with obtaining weapons and explosives needed to carry out the attack. The affidavit says he planned to acquire semi-automatic weapons, improvised explosive devices, an AT-4 and hand grenades.
The affidavit states Taheb used an encrypted social media messaging app to communicate with the undercover agents, referring to the planned plot as "game day planning" and the acquisition of weapons as "grocery shopping."
In subsequent meetings in December, Taheb told the agents that he wanted to attack more landmarks in D.C., including the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and a specific synagogue. He planned to have a base, where he could record video of a speech "to motivate people," featuring burning American and Israeli flags.
Taheb reportedly outlined the details of the plan of attack in a 40-page Google Document, as well as a his justification for creating and leading his group to conduct the violence.
According to the complaint, Taheb, who had never actually shot a gun before, planned to purchase the weapons Jan. 15 and wanted to carry out the attack two days later to "take down as many (people) as they possibly could."
On Jan. 16, the complaint states Taheb showed up to the parking lot of a Buford, Georgia store in order to pick up the weapons he planned to purchase - that's where federal agents arrested him.
Taheb has been charged with violating Title 18USC 844(f)(1), an "attempt to damage by means of an explosive any building owned, possessed, or leased by the United States or any department or agency thereof, or any institution or organization receiving federal financial assistance."
At this time, federal authorities said they believe Taheb was acting alone and "all potential threats have been neutralized." Officials also stressed there was never any threat against Georgia or the Super Bowl.
Shortly after the announcement, federal agents were seen searching Taheb's Forsyth County home.
Federal prosecutors said they will now present their case to a grand jury.