ISIS-INSPIRED TERRORIST SENTENCED TO 50 ADDITIONAL YEARS FOR STABBING TWO FEDERAL PRISON OFFICERS WHILE SERVING 40-YEAR TERRORISM SENTENCE

WILLIAMSPORT, PENNSYLVANIA — A Canadian national already serving a 40-year federal prison sentence for plotting mass-casualty terrorist attacks in New York City has been sentenced to an additional 50 years for a violent assault on two correctional officers at a Pennsylvania federal penitentiary. The attack, carried out in December 2020, caused one officer to lose his right eye and was committed in support of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, 28, of Ontario, Canada, received the additional prison sentence on October 19, 2026, following his guilty plea to multiple federal offenses, including assault, assault with intent to commit murder, possession of prohibited contraband inside a prison, and providing material support to ISIS. The new sentence will run consecutively to his existing 40-year term, bringing his combined federal prison sentences to 90 years.

The assault occurred on December 7, 2020, while El Bahnasawy was incarcerated at United States Penitentiary Allenwood, a federal correctional facility in Pennsylvania. According to federal prosecutors, he fashioned a weapon from part of a steel desk inside his cell and used it to attack two correctional officers.

El Bahnasawy stabbed the first officer in the head and face, inflicting severe injuries that ultimately resulted in the loss of the officer’s right eye. When a second correctional officer intervened to assist, El Bahnasawy stabbed her in the hand. Both officers survived the attack.

After prison personnel restrained El Bahnasawy, investigators discovered a written statement concealed inside his sock declaring, “This is a terrorist attack for the Islamic State.” Authorities also recovered a pledge of allegiance to ISIS that had been taped to the inside of a locker door in his cell.

On November 4, 2025, El Bahnasawy pleaded guilty to the offenses associated with the prison attack. At that time, federal prosecutors stated that the combined charges carried a maximum potential punishment of 130 years in prison. His October 2026 sentencing resolved that prosecution with an additional 50-year prison term.

In 2016, El Bahnasawy participated in a plot to conduct coordinated bombings and shootings in heavily populated areas of Manhattan during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The planned attacks included detonating explosives in Times Square and the New York City subway system and opening fire on civilians attending concerts.

The conspiracy involved El Bahnasawy, Talha Haroon, a U.S. citizen residing in Pakistan, and Russell Salic, a Philippine citizen. The participants communicated through electronic messaging applications while discussing potential targets, operational preparations, and support for the planned attacks.

The FBI disrupted the conspiracy through an undercover investigation. A federal agent posing as an ISIS supporter communicated with the participants and gained access to their plans while presenting himself as someone prepared to assist in carrying out the attacks.

On October 13, 2016, El Bahnasawy pleaded guilty to seven federal terrorism offenses, including conspiracies involving weapons of mass destruction, acts of terrorism crossing national boundaries, attacks on public transportation and public places, and providing material support to terrorists and ISIS.

U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman sentenced him to 40 years in federal prison on December 19, 2018, followed by lifetime supervised release. The sentencing concluded the prosecution against El Bahnasawy for his direct participation in the New York City plot.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg described the additional sentence as necessary to address El Bahnasawy’s continued willingness to commit violence in support of ISIS despite his imprisonment. U.S. Attorney Brian D. Miller for the Middle District of Pennsylvania emphasized that terrorist offenses remain subject to prosecution even when committed inside federal correctional institutions.

Jarod Brown, Assistant Director of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, also addressed the seriousness of the attack, pointing to the injuries suffered by the two officers and the responsibility of federal law enforcement to investigate terrorism-related violence within correctional facilities.

The FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office investigated the prison assault. Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey MacArthur of the Middle District of Pennsylvania and Deputy Chief Larry Schneider of the Justice Department’s National Security Division Counterterrorism Section prosecuted the case.

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