A Harris County teen is accused of plotting with an incarcerated ISIS fighter to carry out a mass shooting.
Court documents show that Laith Adil Shehzad, 17, of Hockley, was indicted on a terrorism charge. He was booked into Harris County jail Friday morning.
Authorities were first alerted to Shehzad's plan last July through Facebook. Shehzad's Facebook accounts showed he had been communicating with an incarcerated ISIS fighter in the Philippines. There was also a "large number of ISIS propaganda and recruitment videos" that he sent and received.
FBI agents were then led to his home on Aug. 18 due to a threat that was made. Authorities ended up finding homemade bombs and a journal with diagrams and instructions on building explosives.
Shehzad was under the supervision of the Texas Department of Juvenile Justice at the time of the plot.
A judge has not yet set Bail in Shehzad's case but plans to do so later. Prosecutors in the case have requested $10 million in court documents.
Under a state law enacted in 2023 that allows prosecutors to accept charges related to terrorism, the Harris County grand jury's indictment could result life in prison or as little as 15 years.
According to court records, Shehzad has no criminal history and claimed to be self-radicalized as early as 2021.
