A Department of Energy electrical engineer has been arrested by the FBI on charges of attempting to provide material support to the Iran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen, according to the Justice Department. Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy, 51, of Richland, Washington, was taken into custody on Thursday and scheduled to make his initial court appearance on Friday. Court records do not indicate an attorney available to speak on his behalf. According to the FBI, Ellaboudy aimed to help the Houthis enhance their communications capabilities. He traveled to Yemen last September, utilizing a passport issued during his previous employment with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to travel through Oman, which borders Yemen. The conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when the Houthi rebels seized the capital city of Sanaa, driving the internationally recognized government into exile in Saudi Arabia. Renewed violence in the region has since killed hundreds and displaced tens of thousands of people. Federal authorities stated that upon returning to the United States, Ellaboudy told Customs and Border Protection personnel that he was returning from a professional trip to Oman as part of a U.S. government assignment to inspect missile defense systems. However, an FBI affidavit noted that investigators interviewed Ellaboudy’s supervisor, who confirmed having no knowledge of any international travel or any Energy Department missile inspection initiative involving Ellaboudy. Investigators also discovered through recorded conversations with FBI informants that Ellaboudy had to be smuggled across the border into and out of Yemen. He reportedly expressed a desire to reach Sanaa to establish official contacts, though the FBI stated he was ultimately unable to arrive there. The federal investigation began after authorities learned that Ellaboudy had acquired precursor chemicals frequently used to build homemade explosives, such as acetone and sodium bisulfate, alongside various drone components. Throughout the probe, the FBI stated that Ellaboudy communicated with multiple confidential informants, including one posing as a Houthi colonel, offering technical guidance and assistance regarding communications hardware. Ellaboudy faces federal charges for allegedly providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, a classification that applies to the Houthis. John Eisenberg, the assistant attorney general overseeing the Justice Department’s National Security Division, called the allegations deeply disturbing in a public statement. If convicted of the charges, Ellaboudy faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
Source: cbsnews.com
