Mohamed Jarmoune

Mohamed Jarmoune was born in Er Rich, Morocco, on the 16th of August 1991. He has lived in Italy, specifically in Niardo in the province of Brescia, since he was 6 years old. He had a permanent residence permit and was regularly employed at a firm working on electrical implants. He was arrested on the 13th of March 2012 on the charge of training an undefined number of people in the use of weapons and explosives with the aim of conducting a terrorist attack.
Jarmoune came to the attention of Italian authorities when, through a larger and generic online surveillance campaign on jihadist security threats, he was found to propagate and post, mainly through Facebook, numerous materials and documents that either educated the reader on the practice of bomb-making, or that justified and expressed support for attacks (suicide attacks in many instances) against western or Jewish targets and people.
He was the administrator of a closed and secretive Facebook group called “Shreds!!!”, in which he posted operational manuals and weapons instructions. In the group, he made clear that he would be looking out for “Western spies” and “kuffar” (infidels) and he specified that he did not want anyone posting “nasheeds” (traditional Islamic songs) but only weapon-related content. He also outlined specific rules to ensure the privacy of the group, mentioning leadership positions for those he trusted (which were likely his own alternative accounts). He used 8 different Facebook accounts – that were part of numerous other jihadist groups – and 4 different Microsoft accounts and made use of TOR, a browser allowing access to the dark web and ensuring complete privacy, as well as an encryption software used by jihadists called “Ekhlaas Network Mojahedeen Secrets”.
Among the documents and materials, he shared online, there were: a translated version of “44 Ways to Support Jihad” by US-Yemeni ideologue Anwar al Awlaki; a translated (by him) version of “how to Torture a Muslim”, in which are explained the tortures used in the Guantanamo prison, and videos of different terrorist attacks, among which the twin towers attack on 9/11/01.
He was also in contact with a woman from Casablanca named Amai Azarkan, who lived in the Netherlands, to whom he would send money. The two were apparently romantically involved, but Jarmoune often expressed his sadness for the fact he could not marry her, as he was a mujahideen destined for martyrdom. Among his contacts there was also Andrea Campione, an Italian man who would also later be arrested on terrorism-related charges and who sent Jarmoune a file called “Jihad Encyclopaedia”. Another important individual connected to Jarmoune was Ismail Mohamed, a man living in the United States. Jarmoune asked him if he could send him weapons from overseas due to the restrictions on weapon possession existing in Italy.
Through the web Jarmoune kept touch with other radicalised individuals, as well as with the network of al-Qaeda. Another notable individual he met with was Barbara Farina, alias “Aisha”, an Italian woman converted to Islam who had married former Imam Abdul Kadel, who had been expelled from Italy in 2003 after praising Osama bin Laden in a Mosque near Turin. His network of acquaintances was, therefore, criminallyrelevant.
When authorities accessed his laptop, they also found a great deal of incriminating evidence. They found a text, written by Jarmoune, that incited and praised terrorist violence; the al-Qaida-published magazine “Inspire”, which contained numerous operational instructions on bomb-making and security measures bypass (such as airport metal detectors). Of greater significance, the police also found a virtual overview of Via Guastalla in Milan, where a Synagogue and the Jewish Centre is located. The video marked entry and exit routes and highlighted the presence of surveillance cameras and police vehicles. It was suspected that that overview was in preparation for a terrorist attack. Another video which was not retrieved bore the name of “Via Arzaga”, another street in Milan where a Jewish school was situated. On his laptop was also a list of chemicals necessary to make a bomb and their relative prices, and a fatwa made by a Middle-Ages Islamic theologian called “whom we should fight and kill”, justifying violence against “infidels”.
When he was arrested, he was also allegedly in possession of a swastika-shaped trinket, as he was apparently a fervent Nazi. On the 16th of May 2013, he was found guilty by the first-degree court of Brescia and sentenced to 5 years and 4 months of prison (accounting for the young age of Jarmoune and his good conduct during trial) to be followed by his expulsion from Italy. On the 7th of March 2014, the court of appeals reduced his sentence to 4 years and 8 months. In May 2015 the court of cassation rejected Jarmoune’s last appeal and confirmed the previous sentence; lastly, in May 2016, his sentence ended, and he was promptly expelled from the country.