Two 20-year-old men in suburban Detroit were stopped before they could carry out a planned Halloween attack targeting LGBTQ+ bars, authorities announced Monday. The men, Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud, had obtained high-powered weapons and practiced shooting at gun ranges while scouting locations in Ferndale, a city known for its vibrant LGBTQ+ community and annual Pride parade.
According to a detailed federal complaint, the pair, along with a minor identified only as Person 1, were inspired by extremist ideologies linked to the Islamic State group. The FBI monitored their activities for weeks, gathering evidence through surveillance, encrypted chat messages, and social media. Agents even used a camera mounted on a pole outside a home in Dearborn to track them. The investigation began after a confidential source recorded a group call in July that mentioned the plot.
The complaint reveals that the men frequently used the word “pumpkins” in their conversations, a coded reference to the planned Halloween attack. Mahmoud had recently purchased over 1,600 rounds of ammunition suitable for AR-15 style rifles. When authorities raided their homes and a storage unit in nearby Inkster, they found tactical vests, loaded handguns, rifles, ammunition, and GoPro cameras.
Ali and Mahmoud were charged with receiving and transferring guns and ammo to support terrorism. They appeared briefly in federal court and will remain in custody until a detention hearing set for November 10. Their defense lawyers declined to comment, though one dismissed the charges as fear-driven.
The reason Ferndale was chosen as a target isn’t fully clear, but local officials expressed concern. Former Mayor Dave Coulter, who is openly gay and now Oakland County executive, called the plot disturbing and said the community still feels the pain from the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, where 49 people were killed by a gunman who also pledged loyalty to the Islamic State.
This case marks the second alleged Islamic State-inspired terror plot in the Detroit area this year. In May, the FBI arrested another man accused of planning an attack on a U.S. Army site in Warren. That suspect, Ammar Said, is currently awaiting trial.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi praised law enforcement’s work in stopping the attack, calling those involved “American heroes.” The case highlights ongoing threats tied to extremist groups and the importance of vigilance, especially around vulnerable communities.