The FBI has thwarted a potential Halloween terror attack in Ferndale, Michigan, which was partially inspired by the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando and the 2015 Paris attacks, according to court documents.
TWO 20-YEAR-OLD MEN AND A JUVENILE ACCOMPLICICE WERE ALLEGEDLY PLOTTING TO ATTACK LGBt NIGHTCLUBS, WITH THE FBI SEIZING MULTIPLE WEAPONS AND TACTICAL GEAR AT THEIR HOMES AND A SHARED STORAGE UNIT. The suspects, Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud, were found to have scouted Ferndale in September as part of a plot to shoot up Americans they called ‘pumpkin,’ according to court records. The FBI intercepted messages indicating the suspects intended to replicate the tactics of the Pulse shooting and the Paris attacks, targeting clubs and disco venues. Surveillance footage showed the suspects practicing at a Michigan gun range, where they were accused of preparing for the attack. The FBI also uncovered evidence that the conspirators had sought religious approval for their plot by consulting the father of a local Islamic extremist ideologue.