Florida man tried to recruit ISIS to kill two college deans: feds

A Florida man tried to recruit ISIS terrorists to kill a pair of college deans, federal prosecutors claim.

Salman Rashid, 23, is facing charges of soliciting another person to commit a crime of violence for asking an undercover FBI source on Nov. 8-9 to place explosive devices targeting the deans of Miami-Dade College and Broward College, where he had been suspended or expelled, the US Attorney’s Office in Miami announced Monday.

Rashid, of North Miami Beach, requested that the size of the bombs to be used to kill both deans be as massive as possible and provided details to a source who purported to be a member of ISIS willing to carry out the attack about where the devices should be placed, as well as security at the colleges, prosecutors said.

FBI officials initially started investigating Rashid in April 2018 after a series of his public Facebook posts called for Islamic law to replace democracy in the United States and detailed his “growing hatred for America” and non-Muslims, according to court documents obtained by NBC News.

In May 2019, Rashid then sought out a confidential source to contact ISIS “brothers” to conduct the terror attacks to “avenge perceived attacks on Muslims,” federal prosecutors said. The source and Rashid then allegedly agreed on two individuals to targets earlier this month.

“These two people, they need to die,” Rashid told an undercover source in one recorded conversation about the deans, court documents show.

Rashid was suspended from Miami-Dade College last December after stalking a fellow student and sending her threatening text messages. In one, Rashid allegedly told the woman that “the creator” had “decided our destiny and chosen separate paths for us,” NBC News reports.

Officials at Broward College expelled Rashid earlier this year after he failed to disclose his suspension from Miami-Dade, court documents show.

Rashid, who made his initial court appearance on Monday, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. He’s set to be arraigned on Dec. 9 and it’s unclear if he’s hired an attorney.

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