Knoxville man found guilty of providing support to ISIS

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - A Knoxville man was found guilty Thursday of supporting the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, more commonly known as ISIS, according to court documents obtained by WVLT News.

Per the Department of Justice, Benjamin Alan Carpenter, also known as Abu Hamza, 31, was arrested on March 24, 2021, and charged after translating pro-ISIS material into English and then trying to publish it.

“For years, Carpenter, using his alias “Abu Hamza,” published a large body of ISIS media, including his weekly newsletter ‘From Dabiq to Rome,’ a periodical that, among other things, celebrated the deaths of American soldiers, glorified suicide bomber, and called for open war against the United States and its Western allies.”

At the time, Carpenter was in contact with an undercover FBI agent posing as an ISIS associate, officials said. He was arrested and stayed in custody through Thursday’s outcome.

Carpenter was convicted of one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization. He could face up to 20 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release.