Bar owner calls suspect in would-be terror plot a panhandler

Now 25, Lutchman planned to attack Merchants Grill in Rochester on New Year’s Eve.

Lutchman, who has been in and out of prison since he was 16 and has history of mental health problems, allegedly hatched the plot at the behest of an ISIS member in Syria he connected with over the Internet.

Before his arrest, he made a video pledging allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said.

Emanuel Lutchman was charged with attempting to provide material support to the IS group, the Justice Department said – a charge that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Rochester Joint Terrorism Task Force and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brett Harvey with the assistance of Trial Attorney Lawrence Schneider of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. “Thankfully, law enforcement was able to intervene and thwart Lutchman’s deadly plans”.

On Tuesday, he went to a Walmart store in Rochester with one of the informants and bought two black ski masks, zip-tie fasteners, two knives, a machete, duct tape, ammonia and latex gloves for the planned attack, the complaint said.

‘New Year’s is here soon. Lutchman had no money, so the informant paid
$40 for the items, according to a complaint filed in federal court.

The city of Rochester has canceled its New Year’s Eve fireworks celebration tonight after the arrest of a man charged with providing material support to a terrorist organization and planning an attack at a local bar/restaurant.

After authorities announced his arrest Thursday, his father and mother described a man who’d had psychiatric troubles since childhood, had recently stabbed himself in a suicide attempt and, they said, wouldn’t have conducted the attack on his own. The arrest and charges against Lutchman come amid growing concerns over residents in the United States pledging support for ISIS.

Lutchman was arrested by police Wednesday for allegedly planning an attack on a bar in Rochester, N.Y., but it was not apparent until later which establishment he was targeting. He also discussed doing assassinations and using a pressure cooker bomb and in one of the meetings with the cooperating individual, Lutchman said he wanted to target a club or bar where they “sneak” a bomb, “kidnap a couple of people and kill them”.

“I will take a life”.

“The FBI thwarted Emanuel Lutchman’s intent to kill civilians on New Year’s Eve”, said Special Agent in Charge Cohen.

Lutchman called her after his capture and said “it was sting…they set him up”, said Carridice.

Lutchman is a self-professed Muslim convert with a criminal history dating back almost 10 years that includes a robbery conviction, according to court documents.