Feds Unseal Terror Charges Against 2 NJ Men
June 6, 2010 - 11:55 AM
by: Mike Levine
Federal authorities on Sunday unsealed charges against two New Jersey men arrested the night before, as they allegedly tried to join an Al Qaeda-linked group in war-torn Somalia and kill Americans there.
The men were inspired at least in part by Omar Hammami, the Alabama-born face of the Somali-based terrorist group, and Anwar al-Awlaki, the New Mexico-born cleric now hiding in Yemen who has been linked to the Fort Hood shootings, the Christmas Day bombing attempt and the failed Times Square car bomb plot, according to federal prosecutors.
20-year-old Mohamed Mahmood Alessa of North Bergen, N.J., and 24-year-old Carlos Eduardo Almonte of Elmwood Park, N.J., have been charged with conspiring to kill or injure persons outside the United States.
They were taken into custody late Saturday night at JFK International Airport, as they attempted to board separate flights to Egypt on their way to Somalia, where the group al-Shabaab is battling the nation’s fledgling transitional government.
After the FBI received a tip in October 2006, an undercover officer with the New York Police Department’s Intelligence Division recorded numerous meetings and conversations with Alessa and Almonte about their violent plans, according to court documents.
On Saturday night, a team of federal agents and local law enforcement were waiting for them at the airport, arrest warrants in hand. Meanwhile, Other federal agents raided the men’s New Jersey homes.
According to prosecutors, over the years Alessa and Almonte saved thousands of dollars, procured military gear and apparel for use overseas, and “physically conditioned” themselves, which included engaging in paintball and other tactical training. They also watched and shared recordings promoting violent jihad, including lectures by al-Awlaki and online videos featuring Hammami, who is now known as "Abu Mansour al-Amriki," prosecutors allege.
In late November 2009, Alessa was recorded as saying that if he and Almonte can’t kill targets overseas, then they’ll “start doing killing here” in the United States, according to court documents. He later said he would return to the “crap hole” of the United States if “the leader ordered me to come back here and do something,” court documents allege.
Speaking of U.S. Army Maj. Nidal Hasan, who allegedly killed 13 people at Fort Hood, Tex., last year, Alessa also discussed doing "twice what he did," according to court documents.
More recently, on April 25, Almonte allegedly said he was happy to hear rumors that Americans would soon be arriving in Somalia to help fight al-Shabaab. Almonte said killing more than Africans would be particularly gratifying, according to prosecutors.
A month earlier, a top State Department official, Assistant Secretary Johnnie Carson, tried to quell rumors of further U.S. involvement, insisting that the United States would not offer any “direct support” to the Somali government. Instead, he told reporters at the time, the United States has been contributing "limited military support," without U.S. soldiers on the ground.
While law enforcement officials have recently said there is no intelligence to suggest al-Shabaab is actively plotting attacks inside the United States, New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said such a strike was "a possibility in this case."
For more than a year, the FBI has been investigating how dozens of Americans from across the country were recruited to train and fight alongside al-Shabaab, which has pledged its allegiance to Usama bin Laden.
The New York Police Department has also “long been concerned” about Americans being radicalized inside the country, Kelly said. About a year ago, an NYPD intelligence officer met with experts on the ground in East Africa, trying to learn more about how al-Shabaab operates and recruits foreigners, according to one source.
In October 2008, 27-year-old college student Shirwa Ahmed of Minneapolis became "the first known American suicide bomber" when he blew himself up in Somalia, killing dozens, according to the FBI.
Somalia has had no stable government since 1991, when dictator Siad Barre was ousted from power. The transitional government has had trouble keeping Muslim militants at bay, and in 2006 fighting with al-Shabaab intensified after Western-backed Ethiopian forces invaded the country.
Alessa and Almonte are expected to appear in court on Monday. If convicted, they each face up to life in prison.
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I fully appreciate the fears many people had about Bush and the Patriot Act. Nearly every day or at least once a week, for the 7 or so years Bush was President. The bill was signed into law in October 2001 and Bush left office in January 2009 - I heard an incessant cry about the rights of Americans being taken away by the federal government (I won't mention how many more infringements have occurred against ALL Americans in the last 18 months but) ... the Patriot Act was intended, not for individuals like me or my neighbor - we could be involved in selling illegal birds or trading pogs. It was intended and used, with very few exceptions against people like those in this story. Several BORN in the US yet their parents are from Somalia or Yemen or Pakistan or ... and they preach anti-American hatred. We believe in free speech, and that is fine and great, but the hatred preached by these Imams is not equivalent to the hate spewed by Michael Moore ... this hatred goes to support, aide, and incitement to murder Americans .... This is what the law was intended to address, and quite honestly, taking the Imam to Court where he will argue free speech protections and be out again within a week doing the same thing, ultimately resulting in a 'deranged' male between 18-34 committing some act or murder ... more possible than not.
How do you combat that hatred? Until now, the argument has been - the marketplace of ideas. We let all the ideas and views get tossed out there and we combat bad ideas with good ideas. We show by our actions our willingness to be model citizens or better human beings. Odd then that the left in this country is now about regulating the blogosphere and internet, particularly concerning hate speech. For the left today, hate speech cannot be permitted in the marketplace of ideas, for that somehow doesn't work, rather it needs to be regulated - UNLIKE Islamic hate speech which needs to be protected.
In any event, the regulations, control, laws, privacy concerns have all quadrupled in the last 18 months, but Michael Moore is not to be heard from nor are any other leftist loons.
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