(NewsNation) — Federal authorities have said little in the wake of a Friday announcement that the FBI disrupted a potential terror attack in Michigan over the Halloween weekend.
Defense attorney Amir Makled — who represents a 20-year-old detained in the case — says he’s waiting to see whether charges materialize.
“There hasn’t been a terrorist plot. There is no imminent plan. There was no imminent plan,” Makled told NewsNation on Saturday.
Residents in a Dearborn, Mich., neighborhood watched this week as investigators took photos and searched for evidence at a suspect’s home. Police in Inkster, another Detroit suburb, said the FBI was also at a storage facility there.
Two suspects were arrested, and three others were being questioned, with ages ranging from 16 to 20. The investigation reportedly centers on whether the group’s members had been radicalized in online forums and discussed carrying out an attack on “pumpkin day” while training with assault weapons.
Senior law enforcement officials say the five males are naturalized citizens from a Middle Eastern country and had access to firearms and firearm training.
But Makled, the attorney for one of the 20-year-old detainees, said engaging in recreational shooting is not illegal, and neither is visiting websites, at least “on its face.” Comments coming from Washington are inflaming tensions, he said.
“We’re seeing a lot of rhetoric online that could be very hostile towards the Arab and Muslim population that’s found in Michigan,” he said.
Spokespersons for the state and national FBI and the U.S. Attorney in Detroit did not immediately respond to messages Saturday, the Associated Press reported.