FBI agents on June 12, 2024, raided the Fischer residence in Columbia, South Carolina, seizing two phones, a laptop, two handguns, and a notebook detailing a plan to join the Islamic State.
Daniel Fischer, 16, had become an 'extreme vision' of Islam after weeks of watching beheading videos, a fact his parents Ana and Andy Fischer discovered when he confided he wanted to join IS.
The notebook, found in his bedroom, outlined steps to travel to Syria and kill civilians, prompting state terrorism and bomb‑threat charges.
On June 29, 2024, Fischer pleaded guilty to conspiracy, and a judge on July 15 sentenced him to three years imprisonment and five years probation, a decision that underscored the legal reach of domestic terrorism statutes.
FBI deputy director Christopher Raia warned that the age of those turning to extremism is falling, citing a 2024 trend of 19 IS‑inspired plots involving at least one teenager, a figure that has alarmed counter‑terrorism analysts.
Counselor Mubin Shaikh of Parents for Peace, who helped Fischer re‑engage with his family, said the teen had found belonging in the extremist narrative; authorities are now expanding outreach programs to prevent similar radicalisation.