New York

Federal agents who arrested eight Tajiki men earlier this month reportedly suspected a possible terrorist attack on US soil, according to sources.

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The eight men residing in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia were taken into custody and charged with violating civil US immigration law by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The eight Tajik nationals remain in ICE custody while facing immigration proceedings, according to two of the sources who spoke to CBS on the condition of anonymity.

Several sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News there was no evidence to suggest that a précised target attack was planned.

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Also read: Eight Tajikistan men detained in NYC, LA and Philadelphia over possible ISIS ties

The detainees reportedly are linked to ISIS and crossed into the US via the southwest border between 2023 and 2024.

However, at that time immigration officials had no information connecting them to the terrorist group. 

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The migrants who had entered the US without proper documentation were then arrested and subsequently released in the US with notices to appear in immigration court, according to a senior official at the Department of Homeland Security.

Later, federal law enforcement got intelligence information - the men were inside the US and had likely ties to ISIS, according to sources.

The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force opened an investigation. 

The investigators kept an eye on their communications and followed their activities on social media, like chat rooms and encrypted sites, according to one of the sources.

The FBI then uncovered that the individuals had potential ties to ISIS and investigators obtained a court-authorised FISA warrant. Investigators also conducted surveillance of the men.

The investigation is on and currently, the men have not been charged with terrorism-related charges. 

The Justice Department declined to comment. 

When questioned about the arrests, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said, “The eight men are, in fact, in custody."

"We did not have derogatory information when they were first encountered," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)