A U.S. Department of Energy employee was detained on charges of trying to provide material support to the Iran-backed Houthis.

The U.S. Department of Justice says Ashton Hamad Alaboodi, 51, was taken into custody after purchasing chemical precursor materials commonly used in the production of explosives, as well as drone parts of interest to the FBI.

Inspectors also found that he took sick leave in 2024 after claiming he was exposed to highly concentrated nitric acid.

Prosecutors say Alaboodi, using his expertise in electrical engineering, helped test and modify solar generators and communications equipment for a covert FBI source who presented himself as a representative of the Houthis, and that in 2025 he traveled to Yemen using an official passport that had previously been issued for him while he worked for the U.S. Army.

If convicted, Alaboodi faces up to 20 years in prison.