Colorado man arrested for providing support to Uzbek terror group

Terror task force

U.S. terror task force agents arrested a Denver-area man as he tried to travel overseas to join a terror group in Uzbekistan on Jan. 23.

Members of the FBI’s Denver and Chicago Joint Terrorism Task Forces arrested Jamshid Muhtorov, 35, of Aurora, CO, on Jan. 21 at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport on charges of providing and attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, the Department of Justice said on Jan. 23. The arrest took place without incident, it said, and Muhtorov made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Chicago on Jan. 23.

The government didn’t allege Muhtorov was plotting attacks against any targets inside the U.S.

Muhtorov, also known as Abumumin Turkistony, or Abu Mumin, is a refugee from Uzbekistan, said the agency. According to the criminal charges which had been under seal, the DoJ said Muhtorov indicated that he planned to travel overseas to fight on behalf of the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU), which has been designated by the U.S. as a foreign terrorist organization. IJU is an anti-Western group opposing secular rule in Uzbekistan in favor of Sharia law. The group was the first to use suicide bombers in Central Asia with attacks inside the former Soviet satellite state. It has also claimed to have repeatedly attacked U.S. and coalition forces in neighboring Afghanistan.

Muhtorov allegedly swore allegiance to the IJU from his home in Colorado, said the DoJ, saying he was ready for any task, even with the risk of dying. Muhtorov’s alleged activities highlight the continued interest of extremists residing in the United States to join and support overseas terrorists, said the agency. A federal affidavit said Muhtorov was an Uzbekistan refugee working as a trucker in the Denver area to support his wife and two children. It said he used a Sony Vaio laptop and Android Blackberry smartphone to communicate his intentions to the group’s website manager and online facilitator named “Muhammad.”

If convicted, Muhtorov faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine, said the DoJ. The DoJ said Muhtorov’s arrest culminated a long-term investigation conducted by the FBI’s Denver Joint Terrorism Task Force. The Chicago Joint Terrorism Task Force provided investigative support.