Pakistani doctor jailed in US for attempting to help Daesh

Muhammad Masood, a 31-year-old licensed Pakistani doctor residing in the United States on a work visa, has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for his attempted support of the terrorist organization, Daesh.

According to a press release issued by the US Department of Justice, Masood, a resident of Rochester, was handed a 216-month prison sentence, equivalent to 18 years, followed by five years of supervised release for his involvement in attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

Court documents revealed that Masood had previously worked as a research coordinator at a medical clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, under an H-1B visa.

As detailed in the official statement, Masood’s activities between January 2020 and March 2020 were aimed at joining the militant group and providing assistance for terrorist activities within the US.

“Between January 2020 and March 2020, Masood used an encrypted messaging application to facilitate his travel overseas to join a terrorist organization,” the statement noted.

Furthermore, it was disclosed that Masood had expressed his desire to affiliate with Daesh, pledging allegiance to the designated terrorist organization and its leader. He had also voiced intentions of carrying out “lone wolf” terrorist attacks in the United States.

On February 21, 2020, he purchased a plane ticket from Chicago, Illinois, to Amman, Jordan, intending to continue on to Syria. However, due to the closure of Jordan’s borders under COVID-19 travel restrictions on March 16, 2020, his travel plans were thwarted.

Subsequently, Masood altered his plans and decided to fly from Minneapolis to Los Angeles, where he believed he would receive assistance in traveling via a cargo ship to reach territory claimed by Daesh.

On March 19, 2020, Masood made his way from Rochester to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) to catch a flight bound for Los Angeles, California. However, upon his arrival at the airport, he was apprehended by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).

Masood had previously entered a guilty plea on August 16 of the preceding year for his attempt to provide material support to Daesh. On Friday, Senior Judge Paul A. Magnuson handed down an 18-year prison sentence following an extensive investigation by the FBI’s JTTF.