Updated Terrorism Charges for Massachusetts Man

Boston, MA - A Massachusetts man faces further charges Thursday, slapped with an indictment connected to a plot to engage in terrorist activity inspired by and in the name of the Islamic State.

Alexander Ciccolo, who reportedly went by Ali Al Amriki, was charged last summer 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. That second count stems from allegedly assaulting a nurse during the jail intake process.

The 23-year-old was additionally indicted Thursday on one count of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of attempting to use of weapons of mass destruction. If convicted, that second count could mean life in prison.

Ciccolo was arrested in July 2015 after receiving weapons from and communicating with people tied to the Western Massachusetts Joint Terrorism Task Force.

According to evidence presented at that detention hearing, Ciccolo is allegedly a supporter of the Islamic State terrorist organization, and had spoken with a cooperating witness in recorded conversations about his plans to commit acts of terrorism. Those plans allegedly included setting off improvised explosive devices, including pressure cookers filled with black powder, nails, ball bearings and glass, in places where large numbers of people congregate, like college cafeterias. Prior to his arrest, agents had observed Ciccolo purchase a pressure cooker similar to that used in the Boston Marathon bombings, a Department of Justice press release said.

During a search of Ciccolo’s apartment after he was arrested, agents reportedly found several partially constructed “Molotov cocktails.” The devices contained what appeared to be shredded Styrofoam soaking in motor oil, the DOJ release said. Ciccolo allegedly said the mixture would make fire from the exploded devices stick to people’s skin and make it harder to put the fire out.

It was reported at the time that Ciccolo is also the son of a Boston Police Department captain.

He has been held without bail since that July hearing. He is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Springfield on July 7.

Photo via WHDH Channel 7