The FBI announced at a press conference Monday morning that they have arrested two potential terrorist suspects. The Bureau arrested a male and a female, both residents of Toledo, Ohio. The two unrelated suspects were reportedly planning separate terror attacks in the area. The woman allegedly wanted to attack a bar, while the man wanted to target two synagogues.
Death, Destruction, and Hate
Agents arrested Elizabeth Lecron, 23, who allegedly was planning an attack on a Toledo-based bar. Authorities accused her of possessing explosives with the intent of harming people and property. According to the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, Lecron had bought hundreds of screws and black powder. Authorities suspect that the woman wanted to build a crude bomb, which she would use to attack the bar.
Authorities also revealed that Lecron had expressed her admiration for past mass murderers. She even called the two teenage Columbine High School shooters as “God-like.” She posted on social media that she was looking forward to posting pictures of her own attack. She published the post right after her visit to the memorial for the Columbine shooting in Colorado.
Lecron has also exchanged letters with Dylann Roof, the shooter who killed nine church-goers in South Carolina. She allegedly attempted to send him Nazi literature along with other personal correspondence. During their investigation, the FBI also found out about Lecron’s Tumblr page called Charleston Church Miracle. Lecron used this page to post photos and comments about the recent mass shootings and massacres.
During her arrest, FBI agents confiscated several weapons found inside her home. This included an AK-47 rifle, several handguns, a shotgun, and bomb-making paraphernalia. A journal was also found that described Lecron’s desire to commit mass murder.
ISIS Supporter and Homegrown Jihadist
During the same press conference, the FBI revealed that they have also arrested a male suspect who had plans to commit terrorism. The FBI arrested Damon Joseph, a resident of Holland, Ohio, on charges of providing material support to ISIS. The 21-year-old suspect reportedly pledged his support for ISIS and was planning an attack in their name.
Undercover agents kept track of the Joseph after he posted pictures of weapons on his social media account. He also posted several photos that were originally distributed by the terrorist group. According to the FBI, Joseph transitioned from a radicalized virtual jihadist to an attack planner in just a matter of months. Joseph also sent undercover agents videos he made to try to recruit them to join ISIS. He even openly told them that he hated Catholics, Gays, and Jews and expressed his desire to hurt them.
During their investigation, agents found that Joseph had planned to attack two separate synagogues in the name of ISIS. A week before his arrest, Joseph agreed to meet with the undercover agents to discuss his plans of attacking two synagogues in Toledo. He reportedly wrote down the address of one of the synagogues and told the agents that he wanted to target the place of worship during Sabbath day. FBI agents apprehended the suspect on Friday after he purchased two AR-15 rifles.
Lecron and Joseph will appear separately in federal court on Monday.