A Montgomery County man inspired by Islamic State terrorists is accused of stealing a van last month in a plot to run over people at National Harbor or Washington Dulles International Airport, federal prosecutors announced Monday.
Rondell Henry, 28, of Germantown, has been charged with interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle after taking a U-Haul van from a parking garage at a mall in Alexandria, Virginia, prosecutors said.
Henry, a computer engineer, left his job in Germantown on March 26, and his family later filed a missing-persons report with Montgomery County Police when he did not return home.
Henry has “harbored ‘hatred’ for those who do not practice the Muslim faith,” and wanted to conduct an attack similar to the 2016 incident in Nice, France, when a truck plowed through a large crowd along a Mediterranean Sea promenade, leaving 86 dead, according to charging documents filed in federal court.
Henry intended to initiate his plan at the Northern Virginia airport before dawn on March 27, but after two hours trying to breach security, he gave up and drove to the National Harbor in Maryland, prosecutors said. Once there, he parked the van and walked around a popular part of the waterfront complex along the Potomac River, eventually breaking into a boat and hiding overnight.
Officers found the stolen van the morning of March 28, and spotted Henry climbing over a security fence near the boat dock. He was arrested by Prince George’s County Police officers.
The federal charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in federal prison.
Henry also faces charges of theft between $25,000 and $100,000, fourth-degree burglary and destruction of property in Prince George’s County.
Henry is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court Tuesday afternoon for a detention hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas M. DiGirolamo.
Prosecutors filed a motion Monday to hold Henry in jail pending trial, claiming he is “a flight risk and a danger to the community.”
Authorities said they found Henry’s cellphone that he had tossed along an interstate highway. The phone had pictures of Islamic State fighters and the group’s flag.
Federal court records did not list attorney information for Henry as of Monday.
Charlie Wright can be reached at charlie.wright@moco360.media
