Alleged ISIL Supporter Indicted in Connection to Terror Plot

An alleged supporter of the Islamic State terrorist group, ISIL, has been formally indicted on a charge in connection with a plot to engage in terrorism, according to Boston’s U.S. Department of Justice.

Alexander Ciccolo, 23, of Adams, was charged by a grand jury with one count of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms and one count of assault with a deadly weapon and causing bodily injury to a person assisting an officer.

According to court documents revealed at a prior detention hearing, Ciccolo allegedly took delivery of four firearms which he had ordered from a person who was cooperating with members of the Western Massachusetts Joint Terrorism Task Force. That official had been communicating with Ciccolo about his plans to engage in a terrorist act.

Ciccolo was immediately arrested after accepting the firearms. Ciccolo was in illegal possession of the weapons because he had been previously convicted of a crime punishable by more than year in jail.

Prosecutors also allege Ciccolo is a supporter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a designated foreign terrorist organization.

In recorded conversations, Ciccolo spoke with an undercover witness about his plans to carry out acts of terror on behalf of the terrorist group. His plans included setting of explosive devices filled with black powder, nails, ball bearings and glass, in crowded places such as college dinning halls.

Prior to his arrest, Ciccolo was seen purchasing a pressure cooker similar to that used in the Boston Marathon bombings, investigators say.

Following his arrest, Ciccolo stabbed a nurse with a pen while he was being processed at a correctional center, resulting in a second charge on top of the firearms charge.

On July 14, 2015, detention hearing, a judge ordered Ciccolo held without bail until trial.

Ciccolo is also the son of a Boston Police Department captain.

The announcement regarding the indictment was made by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin, U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz of the District of Massachusetts and Special Agent in Charge Vincent Lisi of the FBI’s Boston Division.

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