A 51-year-old US Department of Energy employee has been arrested and charged with allegedly attempting to provide material support to the Houthis. Prosecutors say Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy used his electrical engineering skills to help improve Houthi communications and travelled to Yemen in September 2025. What is Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy accused of?According to the US Justice Department, Ellaboudy allegedly tried to provide expert assistance and other resources to the Houthis, which the US has designated as a foreign terrorist organisation. Investigators say he used his electrical engineering background to provide advice about communications equipment.The complaint says Ellaboudy also purchased materials and components that investigators linked to homemade explosive devices and drones. The FBI began looking into him after receiving information about these purchases. The allegations are part of a federal criminal case. Ellaboudy is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.Why did he travel to Yemen?Court records cited by the Justice Department say Ellaboudy travelled from Richland, Washington, to Oman in September 2025. He then used an official passport from his earlier employment with the US Army Corps of Engineers to enter Yemen.Investigators allege that he intended to travel toward Sanaa, Yemen's capital, which is controlled by the Houthis. After returning to the United States, authorities say he told Customs and Border Protection officers that his overseas travel was connected to official government work.His Department of Energy supervisor later told investigators that Ellaboudy did not have authorised government travel to the region.How did his engineering skills allegedly help the Houthis?The Justice Department says Ellaboudy communicated with an FBI confidential source who was presented as someone working for a Houthi colonel. The source was seeking communications equipment for a mobile communications centre.Investigators allege that Ellaboudy gave technical advice based on his electrical engineering experience. This included helping test and modify solar power generators and communications equipment.He also allegedly provided diagrams and guidance about how power and communications systems could work together. The investigation says he researched other equipment that could improve Houthi communications.What happens next in the case?Ellaboudy was arrested on October 1, 2026, in Washington state. The Justice Department said he was scheduled to make his first appearance before a federal magistrate judge in Richland on October 2 at 11 a.m.If convicted, he could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The FBI's Inland Northwest Joint Terrorism Task Force investigated the case.The Department of Energy's Hanford Field Office also said the case did not involve an attempt to harm the Hanford Site or its workforce and that there was no threat to the site's safety or security. The charges remain allegations at this stage. A conviction would require proof beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
