Neighbors Thursday were stunned to learn that two men from Aurora have been charged with aiding a terrorist organization.
Hasan Edmonds, 22, of Aurora, was charged with conspiring to provide material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization. Edmonds’ cousin, Jonas Edmonds, 29, also of Aurora, was arrested on the same charge.
At Hasan Edmonds’ home in the 700 block of Cedardale Place in Aurora Thursday, a man who answered the door and declined to identify himself disputed the charges against Edmonds.
Down the street, neighbor Tina Jones, 30, was shocked by the news of Hasan’s arrest. Hasan and others from his household had taken her 9-year-old son to a fireworks show last summer in downtown Aurora, she said.
She said her family would occasionally spend time with Hasan Edmonds and his cousins.
“He was really quiet,” said Jones, who has lived on the street for nine years. “They say you’ve got to watch the quiet people.”
Jones said she would occasionally see Hasan Edmonds at barbecues.
“He always seemed like he stuck to himself,” she said.
She said she knew Hasan Edmonds was in the military.
“How are you going to fight for your country and join some (expletive) like that?” Jones said.
Jones said the whole thing is chilling
“I’m scared of those people,” she said of the self-proclaimed Islamic State. “We know about ISIS. That’s crazy. You’re telling me someone half a block away was trying to join?”
Hasan Edmonds’ cousin Jonas Edmonds, who was also arrested, lives on the 900 block of Four Seasons Boulevard in the Hometown subdivision in Aurora.
Sam Bonnan has lived in the neighborhood for seven years, but never met Jonas.
Jonas’ front doorstep is about 30 feet away from where Bonnan answered the door Thursday afternoon.
“It’s a little unnerving to know that the guy is right by the house you live in,” Bonnan said when he was told the news about his neighbor’s arrest. “The point (terrorists) are trying to make is that they can be anywhere, and this proves it.”
Diena Meshrem, who lives a few doors down from Jonas Edmonds, said the news of the arrest left her feeling uneasy.
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“I’ve got some big question marks in my mind,” she said.
Neighbor Marcus Raines said he was shocked by the allegations against Jonas Edmonds.
“There is crime everywhere,” Raines said as he walked through the neighborhood. “I’m always aware of my surroundings, but it’s like, ‘What can you do?’ Literally, what can I do to make my environment more safe?”
Geoff Ziezulewicz is a baiduhai reporter and Erika Wurst is a Beacon-News reporter