Thanks to tweets, suspected ISIS backer stays in jail

Federal authorities have charged Hamza Ahmed, 19, of Minneapolis, with lying to federal agents during a terrorism investigation. Ahmed was among four young Twin Cities men officials stopped from traveling to Turkey last November. Screenshot from his Instagram account. Instagram

Laura Yuen
Monday, February 9, 2015

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A 19-year-old Minneapolis man accused of lying to federal agents during a terrorism investigation will remain behind bars for now.

At a detention hearing Monday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven Rau said he was concerned about tweets that Hamza Ahmed posted on Twitter before he tried to leave for the Middle East in November. Federal authorities suspect he was trying to travel to Syria, possibly to join the terror group ISIS.

Prosecutors argued that Ahmed's tweets suggested he was willing to be a martyr and was therefore a danger to the community.

Ahmed's attorney, JaneAnne Murray, said his social media updates were driven by hubris and didn't reflect her client's true intent. But Rau wasn't convinced.

"The tweets you issued were beyond hubris. They were beyond youth," the judge told Ahmed. "They were threats."

On his Twitter account, Ahmed tweeted his sense of feeling conflicted about living in Minnesota while the violence continued in Syria. "Ya Allah give me the chance to Help and fight for the Muslims in Syria," he wrote in November 2013. About a month later, he mused, "Staying here just seems to kill part of me everyday."

He also mentions his lifelong desire to be a martyr. But in that tweet, from November 2013, he vows to appreciate his time on the earth and "not be so eager."

Ahmed was prolific on Twitter, amassing nearly 18,000 tweets since 2012. His musings ranged from Derrick Rose and Michael Jordan to religious affirmations. He posted frequently about jihad but also boasted about his love for a baby sister.

He stopped activity on Nov. 4, just days before he took a bus with three other men from Minneapolis to John F. Kennedy International Airport. Federal authorities say they pulled Ahmed off of his plane before it took off and prevented the other three men from boarding their flights to Istanbul, Turkey.

Somali-American community advocate Mohamud Noor said Ahmed's parents are struggling with the situation.

"They feel the young man has lost his hope," Noor said. "We're trying to make sure we address this from the community perspective. This is the time we have to look at the future of the young men who are vulnerable."

Noor says his group, the Confederation of Somali Community in Minnesota, wants to work with families and rehabilitate young men who are at risk of being radicalized.

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