Authorities have arrested Demetrius Pitts, an Al-Qaeda sympathizer, for allegedly planning a terrorist attack in downtown Cleveland on July 4. According to FBI officials, Pitts also expressed his desire to plan a future attack in Philadelphia, where he had previously lived.
FBI Agent Vicki Anderson said on Monday, July 2, that the 48-year-old Pitts was arrested over the weekend. Furthermore, Anderson said that Pitts was arrested for “attempted material support of a foreign terrorist organization.”
Police say that Pitts wanted to target a July 4 parade in Cleveland and people who would be watching fireworks in that city.
via ABC:
The investigation began in 2017 after authorities learned that Pitts was allegedly expressing support for Al-Qaeda and violent intentions in the United States.
Steve Anthony, the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland Division, said Pitts also expressed a desire to kill military personnel and their families, along with a desire to kill federal and local agents.
“And his desire to commit a future attack at a date to be determined in Philadelphia, Pa., an area he once resided,” Anthony said.
In addition, Anthony said that Pitts met with an undercover agent last week and made statements similar to “what would hit them in their core? Blow up at the Fourth of July parade.”
Pitts, a United States citizen, has been charged with one count of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. The statutory max sentence for that charge is 20 years in prison.
Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson made the following statement about the police’s efforts:
“I want to thank the FBI and all the members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force – men and women whose primary goal is to make Northeast Ohio safe,” said Mayor Frank G. Jackson. “These Law Enforcement Partners continue to secure us against those who seek to disrupt our way of life through violence and the threat of terrorist acts.”
According to the FBI, Pitts has an extensive criminal history including charges of assault, domestic violence, aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon.
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