California man accused of helping terrorists is just a student, lawyer says

Robert Rodriguez, The Fresno Bee on Jun 9, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

The lawyer for a Porterville man accused of conspiring with a terrorist group described his client Tuesday as a student with plans to transfer to Fresno State and become a civil engineer.

“He doesn’t even have a criminal record,” said Peter Jones, who appeared with defendant Elias Shamsaldeen, 21, in court.

Shamsaldeen was arrested by federal agents recently along with two alleged co-conspirators, Bisaam Ghafoor, 21, of Leawood, Kansas, and Bereen Dzayee, 25, of Lakeside.

The three men are charged with conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison.

In its 23-page complaint, an FBI agent said the three co-defendants pledged allegiance to ISIS and vowed to provide it financial support. The FBI also obtained communications between the defendants and a person they believed to be a member of the terrorist organization. The communications included talk of killing U.S. service members.

About August 2025, the FBI receive a tip that Shamsaldeen expressed a desire to travel overseas to fight for ISIS. A few months later, he publicly pledged allegiance to the commander of ISIS. What Shamsaldeen didn’t know is that some of his communication was being shared online with an FBI covert employee.

Jones, who was appointed to represent Shamsaldeen on Tuesday, said he’s had limited conversations with him.

What he knows is that the 21-year-old wants to be a civil engineer and has no criminal record. “He just graduated from Porterville Community College,” Jones said.

Shamsaldeen’s parents and several younger siblings attended Tuesday’s hearing. The parents declined to comment to The Bee.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Erica P. Grosjean continued Shamsaldeen’s initial appearance to Friday, allowing for the defendant to be interviewed by pretrial services. Jones plans to request that his client be allowed to be released from custody.

Jones said Shamsaldeen will be arraigned on the charges in Kansas City where the criminal complaint originated.