A 22-year-old Hanover man has admitted he tried to help the Islamic State, telling federal agents he was ready to either fight overseas or launch attacks at home. On Jan. 30, Michael Sam Teekaye, Jr. pleaded guilty in federal court to attempting to provide material support to ISIS, acknowledging that he took steps both to travel abroad and to prepare a backup "plan B" to target Jewish and pro-Israel communities if he could not leave the country. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a lifetime of supervised release, with sentencing set for Wednesday, July 8.
What prosecutors say
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Maryland, Teekaye told an undercover officer in 2023 that he wanted to travel to Africa to join ISIS as a "mujahid." When it looked like he might not be able to leave the United States, prosecutors say he described a "plan B" to carry out attacks here against Jews and supporters of Israel.
Prosecutors say Teekaye went beyond talk. According to the plea agreement, he researched nearby buildings and said he had thought about how to 'gun down key members or anyone involved.' That planning, laid out in his own words, became a key part of the government’s case.
Weapons preparations and travel plans
Investigators say Teekaye began gearing up for possible violence months before his arrest. As reported by the Baltimore Jewish Times, he bought ammunition and paid for shooting range time in Severn multiple times in May and June 2024. In July, he tried to purchase an AK-style 9mm rifle, but the sale was blocked because he was on probation.
According to the same reporting, Teekaye also appeared to be laying groundwork to leave the country. He shared screenshots of an Ethiopian e-visa and a travel itinerary, and he sent a masked photo of himself holding a machete with the caption "Victory or shahada," a reference to martyrdom.
Arrest at BWI and law enforcement response
FBI agents moved in when Teekaye arrived at Baltimore/Washington International Airport and checked in for an October flight. Court papers say that during the arrest, he kicked and spat at agents and vowed that he would act if he were ever released.
"Michael Teekaye spent years maliciously plotting to join ISIS and murder Americans," Special Agent in Charge Jimmy Paul said, in remarks cited in the U.S. Attorney's Office press release. Prosecutors credited the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force with stopping him before any attack could be carried out.
Why this matters locally
The case shows how online and international extremist recruitment can ripple directly into Maryland neighborhoods, turning faraway conflicts into very local security threats. That concern is heightened by recent national data on antisemitic incidents. The Anti-Defamation League has highlighted FBI figures showing a record number of anti-Jewish incidents in 2024, a trend that civil-rights advocates say makes early intervention and community vigilance all the more critical.
Teekaye's guilty plea ends the evidentiary fight over what he did and intended to do, and shifts the case to the punishment phase. A federal judge is scheduled to decide his sentence on July 8. For prosecutors' statements and fuller local reporting on the case, see the Baltimore Jewish Times.
