Former Upper St. Clair resident indicted on terrorism charge
The Department of Justice announced this week that a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh indicted a former Upper St. Clair resident on charges he attempted to join terrorist organization Hezbollah and lied to authorities about his activities.
According to a press release from the DOJ, Jack Danaher Molloy, 24, was arrested in Chicago, Ill., last month.
Court records accuse Molloy of traveling to Lebanon in August in order to join Hezbollah, but he was told he needed to take other steps. He traveled to Syria in October before returning to Upper St. Clair after encountering difficulties joining the organization.
According to the DOJ, Molloy previously served in the United States Army and holds dual citizenship with the U.S. and Ireland.
Molloy spoke to FBI agents Oct. 20 when he returned to Pennsylvania, and told them he had no plans to involve himself with Hezbollah and that he had no meetings or business in Syria.
According to the affidavit, Molloy communicated with Hezbollah recruiters while overseas and after returning home. Through private messages with relatives, Molloy expressed that his ultimate goal in joining Hezbollah was to kill Jewish people, according to court documents.
Charging documents state that Molloy created an account on X (formerly Twitter) with an explicit anti-Semitic user name.
Investigators allege that Molloy had several anti-Semitic images on his phone, many depicting violence against Jewish people. Documents state that Molloy also researched the incarceration location of Robert Bowers, who murdered 11 people in 2018 at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
“The FBI’s No. 1 priority is to protect the American people from both domestic and international terrorist threats,” said Kevin Rojek, FBI Pittsburgh special agent in charge, in a press release. “To achieve that end, the FBI will leverage the entirety of our resources, partnerships, and all applicable laws to bring to justice anyone who seeks to support or aid any foreign terror organizations, especially groups as deadly as (Hezbollah).”
On Thursday the grand jury charged Molloy with attempting to provide material support to Hezbollah and two counts of making false statements. He was initially charged via criminal complaint on Dec. 6. He was transported by U.S. Marshals to Pittsburgh on Dec. 30.
For the terrorism charge, Molloy faces up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both. He could face an additional eight years and an additional fine for each charge of making false statements.