42-year-old electrician Haisem Zahab in the rural NSW town of Young arrested for assisting Islamic State in designing missile systems and missile detection system. By Rachel Olding.

The extended family of an electrician who allegedly wanted to help the Islamic State with missile detection technology was already on the police radar for funding an arms racket linked to the terrorist group.

Haisem Zahab was arrested on Tuesday at his property in Young in NSW’s south-west, for allegedly attempting to research and design a laser warning device and missiles for IS over the internet.

The 42-year-old had been under investigation for 18 months as part of the Australian Federal Police’s Operation Marksburg.

The operation, focusing on the extended Zahab family, involved seizing $530,000 from the sale of a Condell Park home last year split into several accounts and travel debit cards belonging to four family members.

The home owner and Mr Zahab’s cousin, Hicham Zahab, didn’t fight the AFP’s proceeds of crime proceedings as he had fled to Syria with his wife, son and daughter-in-law. He is wanted by the Kuwaiti government for his suspected involvement in the Islamic State arms smuggling cell.

The AFP allege the money from the sale was going to be used to fund an Islamic State arms racket. …

AFP Commissioner Andrew Colvin said Mr Zahab allegedly used the internet to research and design a laser warning device to help warn against incoming missiles used by coalition forces in Syria and Iraq.

Mr Colvin said the alleged advice given by the “technically-trained” man was “fairly sophisticated and well-planned”.