Undercover NYPD cop uses Instagram to befriend Texas wannabe ISIS bomber, leading to arrest: feds

An undercover NYPD police officer monitoring Instagram caught a potential ISIS sympathizer in Texas, chatting with him online and directing him to two other undercover officers to whom the suspect provided bomb-making materials, the feds say.

The suspect, John Michael Garza, 21, was arrested by federal authorities on Dec. 22 and charged with attempting to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

The undercover agent first discovered Garza in October, after noticing his Instagram account followed pro-ISIS accounts and posted a comment under a pro-ISIS post, according to federal prosecutors in Texas.

The infiltrator contacted and began a conversation via Instagram messages with Garza, who chatted with the cop about jihad, support for ISIS and dreams of one day becoming a suicide bomber, according to a federal complaint.

Garza sent small amounts of money to the undercover agent through a crypto wallet, believing the officer was an ISIS fighter in Iraq, according to prosecutors.

In December, when the infiltrator asked if Garza would help a “brother” in the United States make a bomb, the aspiring terrorist agreed, according to federal authorities, leading to his arrest. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

“The NYPD remains committed to identifying, disrupting and dismantling these networks at their source – before they can achieve their deadly goals,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said in a statement.

Garza, who the federal government describes as a U.S. citizen and Mexican American, lives in Midlothian, Texas, about 25 miles southwest of Dallas.

NYPD undercover police began chatting with him on Oct. 13, telling him he contacted him because they “had common brothers,” according to the criminal complaint.

The conversation turned to ISIS, and Garza told the infiltrator, “Jihad is the way,” according to the feds. The cop suggested they forward their conversation to WhatsApp and the next day, Garza opened an account, according to the criminal complaint.

Garza shared ISIS press releases with the undercover agents, and as their online chats progressed, the officer described himself as an ISIS fighter based in Baghdad and Mosul, training with a group of fellow jihadists but lacking equipment, according to the complaint.

On November 13, Garza sent the cop a video of a suicide bomber with the words “my dream akhi [my brother]”, and explained in follow-up messages, “Yes brother, I always dreamed of this” and “I want this brother’s paradise and killing the enemies of Allah while being a quick death is beautiful.

A week later, the undercover agent told Garza that he had created a crypto wallet so Garza could send him money, the complaint states. And Garza agreed, reportedly sending him $20 through a newly opened Coinbase account.

When the undercover agent mentioned purchasing explosives, Garza sent a message: “Can I make explosive shrapnel?” based on the videos he watched — and that’s when their communications escalated into discussions about making bombs, federal authorities say.

On Nov. 27, just three days after buying a Honda Civic and driving it home, Garza bragged about “making so many bombs” for a car bomb attack on police officers, federal authorities allege.

Then, on Dec. 5, the undercover agent asked if Garza would be willing to provide explosive components to a “brother” in the United States — a second undercover officer — and teach him how to make a bomb, according to the complaint.

Garza agreed but said, “I’m a little scared…what if he’s a fake and a cop,” according to the complaint filed against him.

After the undercover NYPD officer repeatedly told him he shouldn’t do something he didn’t want to do, Garza allegedly began purchasing the ingredients he needed. The plan was to meet with the second undercover agent in a Dallas park on Dec. 22, but scheduling problems ended up scuttling that meeting, according to federal authorities.

So Garza agreed to meet another “bro” – an undercover FBI agent – ​​near a Walmart around 8 p.m. that evening.

Once there, they exchanged a secret phrase, “green bird,” and Garza allegedly handed the agent a bottle of acetone, hydrogen peroxide and sulfuric acid, offering to send the agent a video showing how to use them to make a bomb.

Forty minutes later, authorities arrested Garza at his home and a search uncovered a detonator, authorities said.

Garza told the FBI that he purchased the chemicals to treat wounds and clean pipes and pipes, that he referred to the detonator as a shovel for throwing dirt, and that he defended an attorney when authorities began asking more pressing questions, the complaint says.

Garza was ordered held pending a bail hearing in Federal Court for the Northern District of Texas Tuesday afternoon.

His attorney did not respond to a message seeking comment.