California man arrested for allegedly sending money to ISIS

FBI agents in Los Angeles arrested 28-year-old Mark Lorenzo Villanueva of Long Beach on Friday, accusing him of trying to provide support to ISIS. (X/FBI Los Angeles via CNN Newsource)

The FBI arrested on Friday a man in Long Beach, California, for allegedly sending money to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a designated foreign terrorist organization, according to the Department of Justice.

Mark Lorenzo Villanueva, 28, a permanent U.S. resident originally from the Philippines, faces up to 20 years in federal prison for attempting to provide material support to ISIS, the Justice Department said in a statement.

Investigators said Villanueva was in communication with two individuals who identified themselves as ISIS fighters via social media earlier this year.

In those messages, Villanueva allegedly expressed his desire to support ISIS and offered to send money to aid the group’s activities.

“It’s an honor to fight and die for our faith. It’s the best way to go to heaven.” Villanueva allegedly wrote to the ISIS fighters. “Someday soon, I’ll be joining.”

Over a five-month period, Villanueva sent 12 payments totaling US$1,615 to two intermediaries who accessed the money overseas, according to Western Union records cited by the DOJ.

During his arrest, the FBI recovered what appeared to be a bomb from his bedroom, according to photos posted on the FBI’s Facebook and X accounts.

“Mr. Villanueva is alleged to have financially supported and pledged his allegiance to a terror group that targets the United States and our interests around the world,” said Patrick Grandy, the Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.

Earlier this year, a 19-year-old former member of the Michigan Army National Guard was arrested after he allegedly attempted to carry out a plan to conduct a mass shooting at a U.S. military base in Michigan on behalf of ISIS.

Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said was arrested on the scheduled day of the attack, after he visited an area near the military base and launched a drone in support of the attack plan, according to the Justice Department.

He allegedly planned to attack the Army’s Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command, which is located in a Detroit suburb and manages the Army’s supply chain for tanks.

Prosecutors say he offered to help undercover law enforcement officers carry out the attack by training them to use firearms and make Molotov cocktails and by providing armour-piercing ammunitions and magazines for the attack.

Said was charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and with distributing information related to a destructive device.

By Karina Tsui, CNN