Emanuel Lutchman (Part 8)

Fragments of a future narrative

It was November 2015—three months after Emanuel’s grandmother, as he visited her in Florida, realized he was no longer on his psychiatric medication.

Rochester. He was spending a lot of time online. As autumn waned, he “had several electronic and telephonic communications with CS-1”—confidential human source 1. 

This individual, whose identity remains a government secret, worked as an FBI undercover for over a year before meeting Emanuel. Bureau Special Agent Timothy J. Klapec indicated that CS-1, by December 2015, had “been paid approximately $19,784.”

The source listened, into December, as Emanuel “made numerous statements expressing his strong support of ISIL.” As he voiced “his desire to travel overseas to join ISIL in Syria.” As he explained he was speaking with the Islamic State.

On Christmas, Emanuel contacted Abu Issa Al-Amriki, a Sudanese national who allegedly “sought to ‘remotely-control’ attacks inside the U.S.” Coalition forces killed him and his wife in an airstrike near Al-Bab, Syria, in April 2016.

To Emanuel, Al-Amriki presented himself as a “brother” with ISIS. Their conversation played out something like this:

Lutchman: Being in ISIS—what’s it like?

Al-Amriki: A dream come true. Can someone within ISIS vouch for you?

Lutchman: No.

Al-Amriki: Then you must show you are one of us.

Lutchman: How?

Al-Amriki: Pray regularly. I’ll need time to get to know you. And you have to prove your support for ISIS.

Lutchman: I want to organize my brothers for an operation—for the sake of Allah.

Al-Amriki: Do it. What’s stopping you?