American federal attorneys have charged a LA inhabitant of participating in the October 7 raid by Hamas on Israel, as per newly unsealed court documents.
The defendant, 33, allegedly equipped himself and joined a paramilitary unit that fought together with the organization during the 2023's attack that claimed the lives of 1,195 Israeli citizens, sparking 24 months of fighting that killed thousands more.
Twelve months after the attack, he supposedly journeyed to the US on a fake visa and became a long-term resident.
The accused was charged with providing, attempting to furnish or conspiring to deliver assistance to a designated terror group and the fraud and misuse of a travel document or additional papers.
Alleged Involvement with Armed Group
The defendant was reportedly an member of the National Resistance Brigades, the military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, according to the complaint brought by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
He is accused of organizing a "unit of militants" to cross into Israeli territory after learning about the raid and requested one man to "bring the firearms", court papers indicate.
Mr al-Muhtadi dispatched messages asking others to provide a protective gear for another man and ammunition, prosecutors claim.
A short time following the October 7 assault began, his phone connected to a signal tower close to Kibbutz Kfar Aza, the location of a massacre, the records stated.
Legal Process and Defense
The legal document said that Mr al-Muhtadi denied ever having been involved in acts of terror on his US immigration form.
Upon coming to the US, he lived in a few of locations before settling in Lafayette, Louisiana, where he worked in a local restaurant.
He was taken into custody on the past Thursday, the Justice Department announced.
During a court appearance in LA on Friday, he was asked if he understood the charges facing him, an translator rendered his answer as "yes, but there are a lot of points stated in this document that are so false, I am not guilty", as reported by reports.
The documents do not charge Mr al-Muhtadi of specific crimes or killings. US attorneys have previously indicted high-ranking individuals of the group with the fatalities of American citizens on October 7.
