Threat to New Jersey: Moderate
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to the State of New Jersey office of Homeland Security the terror threat from ISIS to New Jersey is moderate due to the group’s ability to inspire homegrown violent extremists (HVEs) to conduct attacks in the State and surrounding region on behalf of the organization. Since 2015, ISIS has inspired nine attacks by HVEs in the region.
- On December 11, 2017, Akayed Ullah detonated an improvised explosive device in a New York City subway corridor near the Port Authority Bus Terminal, injuring two. Ullah claimed he conducted the attack in the name of ISIS. In November, a jury convicted Ullah for detonating the device and will sentence him in April 2019.
- On October 31, 2017, New Jersey resident Sayfullo Saipov (Passaic County) drove a rented truck down a bike path in lower Manhattan, killing eight and injuring 11. Authorities found a note claiming “ISIS Lives Forever” in the truck.
- On February 21, 2017, authorities arrested Gregory Lepsky in Point Pleasant Borough (Ocean County) for plotting to build a pressure-cooker bomb and detonate it in New York City in support of ISIS. Lepsky also planned to kill his mother and praised ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Following his arrest, officers found several books on jihad and suicide bombing. They discovered he read articles on how to make a pressure-cooker bomb, including “Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom,” published in al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula’s English-language magazine, Inspire. In March 2018, Lepsky pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist group.
