Court Case

USA v. Williams, Elvin Hunter Bgorn

May 2021 (Updated November 29, 2022)
Seattle, WA
ISIS

Elvin Hunter Bgorn Williams was arrested in May 2021 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport for his alleged efforts to join Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) in order to engage in violent acts of terrorism in the Middle East or the United States. In November 2020, a member of a Seattle-area mosque contacted the FBI with concerns about Williams. Williams was using mosque-provided electronic devices to engage in online chats with ISIS radicals and to view ISIS propaganda videos of beheadings and other acts of violence. In November 2020, Williams allegedly swore an oath of allegiance to ISIS. Williams expressed to his associates that if he could not travel overseas, he would commit an attack in the U.S. on behalf of ISIS. He began communicating with those he believed were ISIS recruiters who could get him to an ISIS terror cell in the Middle East or other parts of the world. In early May 2021, Williams booked airline travel from Seattle to Amsterdam and on to Egypt to join ISIS. On Friday May 28, 2021, he went to Sea-Tac Airport to catch the first leg of his international flight. Williams was arrested at the departure gate. Williams pleaded guilty in March 2022 to attempting to provide material support to ISIS. He was sentenced in November 2022 to four years in prison with 15 years of supervised release to follow for providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (FTO), ISIS.

Case Updates

2022-11-29 | Seattle man sentenced to four years in prison for attempting to travel to the Middle East to join a foreign terrorist organization

Elvin Hunter Bgorn Williams was sentenced in November 2022 to four years in prison with 15 years of supervised release to follow, for Providing Material Support to a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). Williams was arrested in May 2021 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on criminal charges related to his alleged efforts to join the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) to engage in violent acts of terrorism in the Middle East or the United States. Williams was arrested following a lengthy investigation into his efforts to join ISIS. According to the plea agreement, in November 2020, Williams began telling family members he was a member of ISIS. Williams posted a video on Facebook in which he swore an oath of loyalty to a leader of ISIS. The plea agreement contains statements Williams made about his intentions: that he sought martyrdom, had "no problem with killing," and hoped to be involved in beheading others.

2022-03-14 | Seattle Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Provide Material Support to a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization

Elvin Hunter Bgorn Williams leaded guilty in March 2022 in U.S. District Court in Seattle to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, ISIS. Elvin Hunter Bgorn Williams was arrested in May 2021, at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on criminal charges related to his alleged efforts to join ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization, to engage in violent acts of terrorism in the Middle East or the United States. The plea agreement contains statements Williams made about his intentions: that he sought martyrdom, had "no problem with killing," and hoped to be involved in beheading others.Williams pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Case Documents