Pennsylvania man indicted for allegedly trying to join terrorist group and lying to FBI
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A former resident of Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, has been indicted after prosecutors said he tried to join the terrorist organization Hizballah and lied about it to the FBI.
A federal grand jury indicted 24-year-old Jack Molloy, who was charged last month after he was arrested in Chicago on Dec. 6, on charges of attempting to support the foreign terrorist organization Hizballah and making false statements involving international terrorism to a department or agency of the United States, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday.
According to court paperwork, Molloy, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Ireland, traveled to Lebanon in August and tried to join Hizballah, which is sometimes also spelled as Hezbollah. While there, investigators said he was told the time wasn't right, so he went to Syria in October and tried to fight for the terrorist organization there.
After getting back to the Pittsburgh International Airport, court documents said Molloy told FBI agents that he was "not completely opposed to what Hizballah does" and "emotionally supports" the terrorist group, but he said he had no plans to join.
While in Upper St. Clair, prosecutors said he continued to try to join Hizballah.
During his time in the United States and abroad, prosecutors said Molloy expressed his hatred toward Jews. In a message to his mom, he agreed that his "master plan was to join Hezbollah and kill Jews," according to court paperwork. He also told her he was considering fighting for Russia against Ukraine in order to reach his goal, investigators said.
"As alleged, Jack Molloy, an avowed adherent of Hizballah harboring deep-seated animus against Jews, took many steps over a period of months—at home and abroad—in his effort to join and fight for this deadly foreign terrorist organization," said United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan in a statement.
"This case is yet another sobering reminder of the threat of radicalized violence against Americans. And while the defendant appears to have worked hard to achieve his terrorist goals, today's charges demonstrate that the resolve of our office and our partners in law enforcement is stronger. We will continue working every day to ensure that members of the Jewish community and every other community in this country can live their lives without fear that they will be targeted by a hate-fueled terrorist attack."
According to court paperwork, Molloy was formerly enlisted as an active-duty soldier in the U.S. Army from about March 2019 to April 2019. Around September 2021, investigators said Molloy signed a contract with the U.S. Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps at the University of Illinois Chicago, but he's no longer a member.
Former FBI agent explains why the case is concerning
Shawn Brokos, a former FBI special agent, said the 27-page criminal complaint for Molloy is daunting.
"It's very clear that he had an allegiance to Hizballah, but also what was clear is his hatred of the Jews," Brokos told KDKA on Thursday.
Brokos now works as the director of community security for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. She said part of why the federation has followed the case so closely is because, according to the complaint, Molloy visited a website detailing the possible prison location of Tree of Life synagogue shooter Robert Bowers.
"Anytime we see anybody who's looking to connect with Bowers or that ideology, it's troubling," Brokos said.
She wonders if Molloy could have staged an attack on Pittsburgh's Jewish community.
"The complaint and then today's indictment are very compelling," she said. "And it raises a lot of concern for the actor's intent. What was he going to do?"
She says law enforcement can't investigate everyone who has expressed hate. But she said there are similarities between Molloy, the New Orleans truck attack suspect and the man at the center of the Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas. Brokos said the similarity is all three are current or former military.
"What are those connections? What is happening? How are these men becoming radicalized? What is happening?" Brokos said.
That's why she says it is important for law enforcement to be proactive, like she says the FBI was in Molloy's case.
"The FBI was on top of this," Brokos said. "They were proactive, and that deterred anything from happening, fortunately. Now, what we saw in New Orleans, I can't speak to the investigation. But that's reactive, right? That individual most likely expressed views and beliefs and then acted in furtherance of them."
She is now looking ahead to Molloy's next hearing on Jan. 8
"If he ends up getting home detention or released on bail, hopefully highly unlikely, that's where he may go back to is a home," Brokos said. "And now you have somebody with those extreme beliefs and hatred of the Jews living in an area where we have our Jewish community centers, our synagogues. So, it's very unnerving."
If Molloy is found guilty on both charges, he faces a maximum prison sentence of 28 years.
