A Department of Energy electrical engineer was arrested Thursday on allegations that he supported the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels by purchasing materials for homemade explosives and drones and traveling to Yemen, the Justice Department said.
Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy, 51, of Richland, Washington, was taken into custody Thursday and is scheduled to make his first court appearance Friday. Court records do not identify an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
According to the FBI, Ellaboudy wanted to help the Houthis strengthen their communications capabilities. He traveled to Yemen last September, as fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces resumed, killing hundreds of people and displacing tens of thousands.
The conflict dates to 2014, when the Iran-backed rebels seized control of the capital, Sanaa, forcing Yemen’s government to relocate to Saudi Arabia.
After returning to the United States, authorities say, Ellaboudy told Customs and Border Protection officers that he had come back from Oman after a work trip. He also claimed he had been part of a U.S. government mission to inspect missile defense systems.
Investigators later questioned Ellaboudy’s supervisor, who said he knew nothing about the engineer’s international travel or any Energy Department missile inspection program to which Ellaboudy might have been assigned, according to an FBI affidavit.
The affidavit also says Ellaboudy was recorded speaking with FBI informants brought into the investigation. He allegedly told them that he had been smuggled into and out of Yemen and had hoped to reach Sanaa to establish connections with government officials.
The FBI said Ellaboudy never made it to Yemen’s capital.
The investigation began after the FBI learned that Ellaboudy had bought precursor chemicals often associated with homemade explosive devices, including acetone and sodium bisulfate. Authorities also say he acquired components used in drones.
During the probe, investigators say, Ellaboudy communicated with several informants, including one posing as a Houthi colonel. He allegedly offered guidance and assistance involving communications equipment.
Ellaboudy faces charges under a federal law that prohibits providing material support to an organization designated by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization. The Houthis are included on that list.
“These allegations are so deeply disturbing that they almost defy imagination,” John Eisenberg, who leads the Justice Department’s National Security Division as assistant attorney general, said in a statement.
