A California man accused of helping plan an ISIS-inspired attack targeting U.S. Special Forces has said through his lawyer that he was simply an ordinary young man pursuing a future in civil engineering.
Authorities arrested 21-year-old Elias Shamsaldeen of Porterville, California, alongside co-defendants Bisaam Ghafoor, 21, of Leawood, Kansas, and 25-year-old Bereen Dzayee of Lakeside, near San Diego, after an FBI investigation into suspected extremist activity that lasted more than a year.
A federal criminal complaint filed in Kansas alleges the three men swore loyalty to ISIS, looked into offering material support to the group, and exchanged messages with someone they believed to be a fellow jihadist.
Federal investigators say that person was, in fact, an undercover FBI confidential source.
Prosecutors contend the group’s conversations repeatedly turned to violence and attack planning, including talk of traveling abroad to join ISIS and obtaining weapons such as drones, grenades, and rocket-propelled grenades for potential use against U.S. Special Forces troops.
In one message highlighted in the complaint, Ghafoor allegedly asked the undercover source, “How many do you hope to kill?”
He is also accused of stating, “I wish I could kill 300,000,000 Americans.”
Authorities say the case began in May 2025 after a confidential human source encountered the group in an online forum.
Investigators later tracked communications in which the suspects allegedly believed they were speaking with an active ISIS contact, as the dialogue escalated into expressions of allegiance and discussions tied to extremist violence.
Law enforcement officials emphasized the seriousness of the allegations, which center on support for a foreign terrorist organization and threats against US military personnel.
Shamsaldeen’s attorney, Peter Jones, who was recently appointed to the case, said he has had limited contact with his client but pushed back on the accusations based on what he knows so far.
He described the 21-year-old as a recent graduate of Porterville Community College with plans to transfer to Fresno State to study civil engineering.
“He doesn’t even have a criminal record,” Jones said.
All three defendants face up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted of conspiring to provide material support to a terrorist organization.
