According to Pittsburgh Post
A 23-year-old Syrian refugee admitted Thursday that he plotted to blow up a North Side church to spur an ISIS uprising and will be sentenced in January.
Mustafa Alowemer pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to provide material support to ISIS.
The U.S. attorney’s office agreed to drop two other counts related to distributing bomb information.
Alowemer said nothing in court except to answer questions from U.S. District Judge Marilyn Horan about what he did and if he understands his rights. An interpreter relayed the proceedings to him.
“Your honor, I plead guilty,” Alowemer told the judge.
U.S. marshals took him away.
Alowemer admitted that he plotted to use a bomb to destroy Legacy International Worship Center in Perry South in the summer of 2019.
He made the plans with three people online and in person who turned out to be FBI operatives.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Soo Song said Alowemer faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison.
Andrew Lipson, Alowemer’s public defender, told the judge the sentencing range should be 78 to 97 months.
The judge set sentencing for Jan. 26.
Alowemer, a refugee who was living in Northview Heights, planned to blow up the church with a backpack bomb.
Ms. Song recounted in detail his online messages with the FBI operatives as well as numerous meetings he had with one of them in which he discussed how to carry out the attack. He also bought bomb-making materials, cased the church, printed out maps of the area and planned an escape route.