KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The FBI arrested three men Friday morning in Kansas and California on charges that they conspired to provide material support to ISIS, allegedly discussing violent attacks on U.S. service members, pledging allegiance to the terrorist organization, and collectively contributing more than $2,000 to an individual they believed to be an ISIS member.
Bisaam Ghafoor, 21, of Leawood, Kansas; Elias Shamsaldeen, 21, of Porterville, California; and Bereen Dzayee, 25, of Lakeside, California, were arrested on a complaint filed in the District of Kansas. The alleged conspiracy ran from at least February 2025 through approximately June 2026.
According to the complaint, the three men communicated through Discord chats, voice calls, and other messaging platforms, pledging allegiance to ISIS and its leader and exchanging messages in social media groups promoting violence on the organization’s behalf. Ghafoor stated it would be exciting if his name could be written on a drone used to attack Americans — and prosecutors said his name was in fact written on the projectile of a rocket-propelled grenade purportedly intended for use against U.S. service members overseas. Ghafoor also expressed a desire to kill a female soldier by beheading and said he wished he could kill 300 million Americans. Dzayee suggested U.S. Special Forces should be targeted in drone attacks. Shamsaldeen expressed a desire to stab a U.S. service member and provided financial resources for purchasing drones intended to kill American troops deployed overseas.
The defendants also communicated their desire to travel outside the United States to fight on behalf of ISIS and expressed willingness to die for the organization.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the arrests demonstrated the administration’s commitment to dismantling terrorist networks and credited FBI vigilance with preventing further violence against U.S. service members. FBI Director Kash Patel praised the work of agents in Kansas City, San Diego, Sacramento, Newark, and Richmond, along with the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division.
If convicted, each defendant faces significant federal prison time. The case was investigated by FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces in the Kansas City, San Diego, and Sacramento field offices.