Harlem Suarez, 23, of Key West, Fla., is accused of plotting to bury and detonate a backpack bomb on a local beach.
There is no indication in court documents that Mr. Suarez had any contact with a recruiter or an actual member of the Islamic State. There is also no indication that he was a practicing Muslim. Leaders at the local mosque in Key West (the only mosque within 150 miles) told the Monitor they had never seen Suarez until they saw his picture in the newspaper after his arrest.
Based on information in an FBI affidavit, it appears that Suarez became interested in the Islamic State group by watching propaganda videos, including graphic images of prisoners and hostages being beheaded.
According to his lawyer, Richard Della Fera, Suarez is no terrorist; he is a confused young man who became infatuated and obsessed with the brutal military exploits of the IS group as portrayed on social media.
Suarez emigrated to the United States from Cuba with his parents in 2004. He was living with his parents at the time of his arrest on July 28.
Federal agents focused on Suarez after receiving a tip about militant rhetoric on his Facebook page. The charges against him are based on statements he subsequently made to two undercover FBI operatives posing as Islamic State supporters.
In mid-May, Suarez sought to make an Islamic State recruitment video.
He dictated the narration to the undercover FBI operative. He said in part: “I call to other brothers worldwide to create [a] Caliphate in the Middle East. Destroy our enemies against us. Let live only [those] who are our brothers and sisters. Send our mujahideen to a different soil [beyond the Mideast] with tanks, missiles, grenades, and other tactical needs. American soil is the past, we will destroy America and divide it in two. We will raise our black flag on top of your White House and any president on duty (cut head).”
Suarez was arrested after taking possession of what the FBI operative told him was a bomb in a backpack. In fact it was an inert device that looked like a bomb. Suarez had provided two packages of nails, a cellphone, the backpack, and $100 for the device.
The young man had suggested that he wanted to bury a bomb on a sandy beach at night and detonate it the next day by remote control.
He is charged in a two-count indictment with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to provide material support to a terror organization. If convicted on the bomb charge he faces up to life in prison.
Suarez’s lawyer has said his client has the intellectual capacity of a 14-year-old. “What I have observed is a young man who is very immature for his age,” he said.
