A former Marine accused of supporting a Christmas Day terror attack at San Francisco's Pier 39 popular tourist destination was schedule to appear in a Fresno courtroom Friday, according to the Justice Department.
Everitt Aaron Jameson, 26, supported radical ISIS jihadi beliefs, wrote social media posts supporting terrorism, communicated with people he believed supported his views and offered to provide services to them with a tow truck, according to a report written by FBI Special Agent Christopher McKinney.
A confidential source alerted the FBI to a Facebook account Jameson ran, agents said.
Jameson “liked” and “loved” posts that were pro-ISIS and pro-terrorism, the source told the FBI. Among the posts was a picture of Santa Claus standing in New York with a box of dynamite.
Jameson met with an FBI undercover employee he believed to be associated with ISIS and described his interest in planning and undertaking a violent attack in San Francisco, the report said.
Agent McKinney said James specifically mentioned Pier 39 in San Francisco because he had been there before and knew it was a heavily crowded area.
According to the undercover agent, Jameson said he wanted to use explosives and “funnel” people into a location where he could inflict casualties. He said he needed ammunition, powder, tubing, nails, timers, and remote detonators. Jameson planned to go to the mountains and build the devices at a remote campground, then store them at his home in Modesto, said officials.
Jameson said he did not have or need an escape plan because he was ready to die, according to the report.
Jameson also voiced support for the October 31, 2017 terror attack in New York City during which a driver used his truck to kill eight people and mentioned the 2015 San Bernardino attack, the report said.
Agent McKinney said Jameson attended basic recruit training for the U.S. Marine Corps and earned a ‘sharpshooter’ rifle qualification. Jameson was discharged for fraudulent enlistment due to an undisclosed history of asthma.
There was a critical mistake during the investigation, the FBI report showed. An FBI employee called Jameson’s mobile phone and hung up when Jameson answered in Arabic. Jameson returned the call and learned the name of the employee, but not the employer.
A search warrant was executed at Jameson’s Modesto home on Dec. 20. Investigators found his will and a handwritten letter.
