Minnesota man pleads guilty to attempting to support ISIS

A Minnesota man has pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to ISIS, according to prosecutors.

Court documents state that 23-year-old Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan made repeated attempts to join ISIS in Somalia and used social media to praise terrorist attacks and spread propaganda, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota.

Hassan was arrested in February after federal agents discovered evidence of his plans to travel overseas, as well as instructional materials on making explosives.

Prosecutors said the FBI began investigating after receiving a tip about social media accounts that posted content in support of Al Shabab and later ISIS. The accounts, linked to Hassan, shared propaganda videos calling for jihad, celebrated attacks in the United States, and displayed ISIS symbols.

Following the January 1 mass shooting in New Orleans, which left 14 people dead, Hassan praised the gunman, calling him “the legend that killed Americans.”

In December 2024, Hassan twice attempted to travel from Minnesota to Somalia via Ethiopia to join ISIS fighters. On his first attempt he was denied boarding due to incomplete travel documents.

Days later, he purchased additional documents and attempted the same trip, but was stopped at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, where Customs and Border Protection agents inspected his belongings and cellphones.

Investigators found messages with an ISIS recruiter, files on sniper training, and discussions of joining the “battlefield.”

The FBI later seized Hassan’s phones and a knife during his arrest, and found a homemade ISIS flag in his vehicle. Forensic searches uncovered additional extremist materials, including manuals on how to manufacture explosives such as C-4 and HMTD, a highly unstable organic-peroxide explosive.

Hassan admitted to agents that he supported ISIS, regularly viewed and posted its propaganda, and believed in establishing an Islamic caliphate.

Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said Hassan “flew the ISIS flag, venerated attacks on the homeland, and wanted to kill Americans,” adding that authorities would not allow Minnesota to become a safe haven for terrorists.

Hassan pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. His sentencing will take place at a later date.