SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Nov. 12, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — A Salt Lake City man has pleaded guilty after law enforcement officials say he provided a bomb-making video to contacts he believed to be ISIS leaders planning a violent attack.
Murat Suljovic, 23, of Salt Lake City, pleaded guilty Tuesday morning in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City to one count of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. U.S. Magistrate Judge Dustin B. Pead presided at the plea hearing.
A statement from the U.S. Department of Justice and the office of U.S. Attorney John W. Huber, District of Utah, says that according to the plea agreement, Suljovic admitted that in January 2019, while living in Utah, he corresponded with a person, identified as Person A in the court document, whom he believed to be an agent of ISIS.
“Suljovic admitted he believed Person A was interested in performing an attack for ISIS,” the statement says. “He also believed Person A was assisting another individual, referred to as Person B in the plea agreement, who was also interested in performing an attack for ISIS.
“Suljovic provided advice about potential targets for a terrorist attack and advice about how to plan an attack. Suljovic admitted he provided a bomb-making tutorial video to Person A in the correspondence to share with Person B for purposes of training and assisting Person B in carrying out an attack, according to the plea agreement.
“By providing the bomb-making tutorial video to Person A, Suljovic admitted he
knowingly attempted to provide material support to ISIS, knowing that ISIS has engaged and does engage in terrorism. Suljovic was charged with providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization in a Felony Information filed in May.”
As a part of the plea agreement, Suljovic agreed to forfeit a variety of computer and
electronic equipment used to facilitate his criminal conduct or acquired from his conduct, the DoJ statement says.
The maximum potential penalty for the conviction is 20 years in prison and a fine of
$250,000. A sentencing date for Suljovic, who remains in custody, will be scheduled later.
The case is being investigated by the FBI and members of its Joint Terrorism Task Force and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carl D. LeSueur and Tyler L. Murray of the Utah U.S. Attorney’s Office with the assistance of National Security Division Counterterrorism.
