Public Documents Contradict Claim Email Spying Foiled Terror Plot

Defenders of the American government’s online spying program known as “PRISM” claimed Friday that the suddenly controversial secret effort had saved New York City’s subways from a 2009 terrorist plot led by a young Afghan-American, Najibullah Zazi.

Quote:

U.S. Attorney’s Office
Eastern District of New York
March 15, 2011

www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2011/indictment-unsealed-charging-additional-member-of-al-qaeda-plot

Indictment Unsealed Charging Additional Member of al Qaeda Plot

A superseding indictment was unsealed in Brooklyn federal court yesterday charging Ferid Imam, also known as “Yousef,” with providing and conspiring to provide material support to al Qaeda, aiding and abetting the terrorist training of Najibullah Zazi, Zarein Ahmedzay, and Adis Medunjanin, and using a destructive device in furtherance of crimes of violence.1 The indictment was unsealed in coordination with Canadian authorities, who earlier today announced terrorism charges against Imam, who is a Canadian citizen. According to the Eastern District indictment, Imam aided and abetted Zazi, Ahmedzay, and Medunjanin’s receipt of military-type training from al Qaeda when the three men traveled to Pakistan in 2008. Zazi, Ahmedzay, and Medunjanin subsequently returned to the United States to carry out a plot to detonate improvised explosive devices on behalf of al Qaeda. This plot was uncovered and disrupted by law enforcement authorities in September 2009. Zazi pleaded guilty to his role in the plot on February 22, 2010; Ahmedzay similarly pleaded guilty on April 23, 2010.

If convicted of the crimes in the indictment, Imam faces between 30 years’ and life imprisonment.

The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, and Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner, New York City Police Department.

“As today’s charges demonstrate, we will not rest in our pursuit of those responsible for plotting terrorist attacks,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. Ms. Lynch expressed her gratitude to the law enforcement personnel, both American and Canadian, who took part in the investigation.

“The three men already charged with conspiring to set off bombs in New York were also charged with receiving overseas training to accomplish that nefarious goal. Among other alleged acts of terrorism, Ferid Imam helped them get that training. Today’s charges are an important step in bringing to justice all the conspirators,” said FBI New York Assistant Director-in-Charge Fedarcyk.

NYPD Commissioner Kelly stated, “Today’s charges against Ferid Imam are a result of the successful partnerships forged between police, prosecutors, and intelligence agencies in our efforts to keep the threat of terrorism at bay.”

The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

The Defendant:

FERID IMAM
Alias: “Yousef”
Age: 30

1 The charges contained in the superseding indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

[Note: Phone number from the press release removed by me for this post.]

NOTE The following text is a quote:

www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2011/father-of-would-be-suicide-bomber-convicted-of-obstructing-terrorism-investigation

Father of Would-Be Suicide Bomber Convicted of Obstructing Terrorism Investigation

U.S. Attorney’s Office
July 22, 2011
Eastern District of New York

Mohammed Wali Zazi, the father of convicted terrorist Najibullah Zazi (“Najibullah”), was found guilty today by a Brooklyn federal jury of destroying bomb-making materials and conspiring to obstruct the federal investigation into Najibullah’s and his co-conspirators’ terrorist plot to attack the New York City subway system.

The verdict was announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; James F. Yacone, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Denver Field Office; Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office; and Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner, New York City Police Department.

Testimony and evidence at trial, as well as other court documents in this and related cases, established that a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of New York began investigating Najibullah’s plot to detonate improvised explosive devices in the New York City area in September 2009. The investigation by the grand jury and the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed that Najibullah had sent e-mail messages to a contact in Pakistan seeking key ingredients for constructing a bomb, and had then rented a car in Denver, Colorado, and driven toward New York City. On September 11, 2009, while Najibullah was in New York City, the FBI conducted a covert search of his car and discovered handwritten bomb-making notes. Also on September 11, a Queens imam, who had been asked by authorities for information about Najibullah, tipped off the defendant and Najibullah about the investigation. Najibullah then returned to his home in Colorado.

After Najibullah returned to Colorado, his family members, led by the defendant Mohammed Wali Zazi, attempted to derail the federal investigation that was moving quickly to gather information about the plotters and the plot. For example, when asked about his relationship with the Queens imam who had tipped off the family about the investigation, the defendant lied to the FBI, claiming that he had no idea who the imam was—even though he had known the imam for years and had just engaged in a lengthy telephone call with him about the terrorist investigation. The defendant also lied about his relationship to Najibullah’s co-conspirator, Amanullah Zazi. Finally, the defendant directed family members to destroy Najibullah’s chemicals and other bomb-making materials so that the FBI would not find them.

When sentenced on December 2, 2011, the defendant faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on each of the two counts of conviction. Eastern District of New York Assistant U.S. Attorneys will also prosecute the defendant separately for visa fraud in the Southern District of New York.1

The defendant is the third individual to be convicted of attempting to obstruct the investigation in the Eastern District of New York into Najibullah’s and his co-conspirators’ terrorist plot. On January 8, 2010, Najibullah’s cousin, Amanullah, pleaded guilty to obstructing justice and aiding Najibullah and others in the receipt of al Qaeda training, and on January 22, 2010, Najibullah’s uncle, Naqib Jaji, pleaded guilty to obstructing justice.

“This defendant sought to conceal one of the most serious terror plots in recent times. He also enlisted others to help him spin his web of lies and to destroy key evidence. Had the plot not been thwarted, it would have left Americans at grave risk,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “Just as we and our partners in law enforcement will vigorously prosecute those who plot terrorist attacks, we will also seek out and bring to justice those who obstruct the government’s investigations into those plots.” Ms. Lynch expressed her gratitude and appreciation to the federal and state law enforcement personnel who took part in the investigation.

“Mohammed Wali Zazi may have been under no legal obligation to assist investigators. But he lied to them, impeding the investigation and obstructing justice. Being uncooperative is one’s prerogative. Obstructing justice is a crime,” said FBI New York Assistant Director in Charge Fedarcyk.

NYPD Commissioner Kelly stated, “One of the reasons for New York’s safety in the decade since 9/11 was manifested in today’s verdict. The collaboration between NYPD detectives and FBI agents, and the prosecutors’ pursuit of justice in the case, has once again demonstrated the importance of that partnership.”

The government’s case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Berit Berger, Andrew E. Goldsmith and Melissa Marrus of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, and Trial Attorney Courtney Sullivan of the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney William Narus of the Counterterrorism Section.

1 The charges contained in the visa fraud indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

NOTE The following text is a quote:

www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2012/al-qaeda-operative-convicted-by-jury-in-one-of-the-most-serious-terrorist-threats-to-the-united-states-since-9-11

Al Qaeda Operative Convicted by Jury in One of the Most Serious Terrorist Threats to the United States Since 9/11

Defendant and Co-Plotters Came Within Days of Suicide Bombing of New York City Subways; Defendant Attempted Suicide Attack on Whitestone Expressway in Queens, New York

U.S. Attorney’s Office May 01, 2012

— filed under: Breaking News, Counterterrorism, New York Top Stories, Press Release, Terror, Terrorism, Weapons of Mass Destruction

BROOKLYN, NY—Earlier today, following a four-week trial, Adis Medunjanin, age 34, a Queens resident who joined al Qaeda and plotted to commit a suicide terrorist attack, was found guilty of multiple federal terrorism offenses. The defendant and his accomplices came within days of executing a plot to conduct coordinated suicide bombings in the New York City subway system in September 2009, as directed by senior al Qaeda leaders in Pakistan. When the plot was foiled, the defendant attempted to commit a terrorist attack by crashing his car on the Whitestone Expressway in an effort to kill himself and others.

The guilty verdict was announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security.

The government’s evidence in this and related cases established that in 2008, Medunjanin and his co-plotters, Najibullah Zazi and Zarein Ahmedzay, agreed to travel to Afghanistan to join the Taliban and kill United States military personnel abroad. They arrived in Peshawar, Pakistan, in late August 2008, but Medunjanin and Ahmedzay were turned back at the Afghanistan border. Within days, Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay met with an al Qaeda facilitator in Peshawar and agreed to travel to Waziristan for terrorist training. There, they met with al Qaeda leaders Saleh al-Somali, then the head of al Qaeda external operations, and Rashid Rauf, a high-ranking al Qaeda operative, who explained that the three would be more useful to al Qaeda and the jihad by returning to New York and conducting terrorist attacks. In Waziristan, Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay received al Qaeda training on how to use various types of high-powered weapons, including the AK-47, PK machine gun, and rocket-propelled grenade launcher. During the training, al Qaeda leaders continued to encourage Medunjanin and his fellow plotters to return to the United States to conduct “martyrdom” operations and emphasized the need to hit well-known targets and maximize the number of casualties. Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay agreed and discussed the timing of the attacks and possible target locations in Manhattan, including the subway system, Grand Central Station, the New York Stock Exchange, Times Square, and movie theaters.

Upon their return to the United States, Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay met and agreed to carry out suicide bombings during the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, which fell in late August and September 2009. Zazi would prepare the explosives, and all three would conduct coordinated suicide bombings. In July and August 2009, Zazi purchased large quantities of component chemicals necessary to produce the explosive TATP [triacetone triperoxide] and twice checked into a hotel room near Denver, Colorado, to mix the chemicals. Federal investigators later found bomb-making residue in the hotel room.

On September 8, 2009, Zazi drove from Denver to New York, carrying operational detonator explosives and other materials necessary to build bombs. However, shortly after arriving in New York, he learned that law enforcement was investigating the plotters’ activities. The men discarded the explosives and other bomb-making materials, and Zazi traveled back to Denver, where he was arrested on September 19, 2009.

On January 7, 2010, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at Medunjanin’s residence. Shortly thereafter, Medunjanin left his apartment and attempted to turn his car into a weapon of terror by crashing it into another car at high speed on the Whitestone Expressway. Moments before impact, Medunjanin called 911, identified himself, and left his message of martyrdom, shouting an al Qaeda slogan: “We love death more than you love your life.”

Today, Medunjanin was convicted of conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiring to commit murder of U.S. military personnel abroad, providing and conspiring to provide material support to al Qaeda, receiving military training from al Qaeda, conspiring and attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, and using firearms and a destructive devices in relation to these offenses. When sentenced by United States District Judge John Gleeson on September 7, 2012, Medunjanin faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison. To date, seven defendants, including Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay, have been convicted in connection with the al Qaeda New York City bombing plot and related charges.

“Justice was served today in Brooklyn, as a jury of New Yorkers convicted an al Qaeda operative bent on terrorism, mass murder, and destruction in the New York City subways,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “Adis Medunjanin’s journey of radicalization led him from Flushing, Queens, to Peshawar, Pakistan, to the brink of a terrorist attack in New York City—and soon to a lifetime in federal prison. As this case has proved, working against sophisticated terrorist organizations and against the clock, our law enforcement and intelligence agencies can detect, disrupt and destroy terrorist cells before they strike, saving countless innocent lives.” Ms. Lynch expressed her gratitude and appreciation to the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York and each of the federal, state, and local law enforcement personnel who took part in the investigation, as well as to the law enforcement authorities in the United Kingdom and Norway who assisted with the case.

“Adis Medunjanin was an active and willing participant in one of the most serious terrorist plots against the homeland since 9/11. Were it not for the combined efforts of the law enforcement and intelligence communities, the suicide bomb attacks that he and others planned would have been devastating,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Monaco. “I thank the many agents, analysts, and prosecutors who helped bring about today’s result. I also thank our counterparts in the United Kingdom for their assistance in this investigation and prosecution.”

The government’s case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David Bitkower, James P. Loonam and Berit W. Berger of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, with assistance provided by the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

NOTE The following text is a quote:

www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2012/al-qaeda-operative-sentenced-to-life-imprisonment-in-one-of-the-most-serious-terrorist-threats-to-the-united-states-since-9-11

Al Qaeda Operative Sentenced to Life Imprisonment in One of the Most Serious Terrorist Threats to the United States Since 9/11

Defendant and Co-Plotters Came within Days of Suicide Bombing of New York City Subways; Defendant Attempted Suicide Attack on Whitestone Expressway in Queens, New York

U.S. Attorney’s Office
November 16, 2012

BROOKLYN, NY—Earlier today, Adis Medunjanin, age 34, a Queens resident who joined al Qaeda and then plotted and attempted to commit suicide terrorist attacks, was sentenced to life imprisonment for multiple federal terrorism offenses. The defendant and his accomplices came within days of executing a plot to conduct coordinated suicide bombings in the New York City subway system in September 2009, as directed by senior al Qaeda leaders in Pakistan.

When the plot was foiled, the defendant attempted to commit a terrorist attack by crashing his car on the Whitestone Expressway in an effort to kill himself and others.

The sentence was announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security.

The government’s evidence at trial in this and related cases established that, in 2008, Medunjanin and his co-plotters, Najibullah Zazi and Zarein Ahmedzay, agreed to travel to Afghanistan to join the Taliban and kill United States military personnel abroad. They arrived in Peshawar, Pakistan, in late August 2008, but Medunjanin and Ahmedzay were turned back at the Afghanistan border. Within days, Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay met with an al Qaeda facilitator in Peshawar and agreed to travel to Waziristan for terrorist training.

There, they met with al Qaeda leaders Saleh al-Somali, then the head of al Qaeda external operations, and Rashid Rauf, a high-ranking al-Qaeda operative, who explained that the three would be more useful to al Qaeda and the jihad by returning to New York and conducting terrorist attacks. In Waziristan, Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay received al Qaeda training on how to use various types of high-powered weapons, including the AK-47, PK machine gun, and rocket-propelled grenade launcher. During the training, al Qaeda leaders, including Adnan El Shukrijumah, continued to encourage Medunjanin and his fellow plotters to return to the United States to conduct a “martyrdom” operation and emphasized the need to hit well-known targets and maximize the number of casualties. Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay agreed and discussed the timing of the attacks and possible target locations in Manhattan, including the subway system, Grand Central Terminal, the New York Stock Exchange, Times Square, and movie theaters.

Upon their return to the United States, Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay met and agreed to carry out suicide bombings during the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, which fell in late August and September 2009. Zazi agreed to prepare the explosives, and all three agreed to conduct coordinated suicide bombings. In July and August 2009, Zazi purchased large quantities of the component chemicals necessary to produce the explosive TATP (triacetone triperoxide) and twice checked into a hotel room near Denver, Colorado, to mix the chemicals. Federal investigators later found bomb-making residue in the hotel room.

On September 8, 2009, Zazi drove from Denver to New York carrying operational detonator explosives and other materials necessary to build the suicide bombs. However, shortly after arriving in New York, he learned that law enforcement was closing in on the plotters. In an unsuccessful effort to avoid detection, the men discarded the explosives and other bomb-making materials, and Zazi traveled back to Denver, where he was arrested on September 19, 2009.

On January 7, 2010, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at Medunjanin’s residence. Shortly thereafter, Medunjanin left his apartment and attempted to turn his car into a weapon of terror by crashing it into another car at high speed on the Whitestone Expressway. Moments before impact, Medunjanin called 911, identified himself, and left his message of martyrdom, shouting the al Qaeda slogan, “We love death more than you love your life.”

On May 1, 2012, a jury convicted Medunjanin of:

- conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction

- conspiring to commit murder of U.S. military personnel abroad

- providing and conspiring to provide material support to al Qaeda

- receiving military training from al Qaeda

- conspiring and attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries

- using explosives in relation to these offenses.

To date, seven defendants, including Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay, have been convicted in connection with the al Qaeda New York City bombing plot and related charges.

“Adis Medunjanin sought martyrdom for himself and death for innocent New Yorkers as part of al Qaeda’s plan to spread terror within our shores. Instead, he will now spend the rest of his life where he belongs, behind bars,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “Justice demanded a sentence of life for this al Qaeda operative, who was dedicated to mass murder and destruction in the New York City subways. Scores of innocent New Yorkers would have been killed or maimed had Medunjanin succeeded in his plot. The combined efforts of dedicated law enforcement stood as a bulwark against al Qaeda’s reach.” Ms. Lynch expressed her gratitude and appreciation to the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York and each of the federal, state, and local law enforcement personnel who took part in the investigation, as well as to the law enforcement authorities in the United Kingdom and Norway who assisted with the case.

“Adis Medunjanin was today held accountable for his role in one of the most serious terrorist plots against the homeland since 9/11. Were it not for the combined efforts of the law enforcement and intelligence communities, the suicide bomb attacks that he and others planned would have been devastating,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco. “I thank the many agents, analysts, and prosecutors who helped bring about today’s result.”

The government’s case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David Bitkower, James P. Loonam, and Berit W. Berger of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, and Jeffrey H. Knox, formerly of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, with assistance provided by the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

NOTE The following text is a quote:

www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2013/alleged-al-qaeda-operative-extradited-to-united-states-for-role-in-international-terrorism-plot-targeting-new-york-city-united-kingdom-and-scandinavia

Alleged al Qaeda Operative Extradited to United States for Role in International Terrorism Plot Targeting New York City, United Kingdom, and Scandinavia

U.S. Attorney’s Office
January 03, 2013

Eastern District of New York

BROOKLYN—Abid Naseer, 26, a Manchester, England resident, was extradited from the United Kingdom (U.K.) to Brooklyn, New York, today to face charges for his alleged role in an international al Qaeda plot to attack targets in the United States and Europe. Naseer will make his initial appearance on Monday, January 7, 2013, at 2:00 p.m. before The Hon. Raymond J. Dearie of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Naseer is the eighth defendant to face charges in Brooklyn federal court related to the a Qaeda plot involving Adis Medunjanin, Najibullah Zazi, and Zarein Ahmedzay.

The extradition was announced by Loretta E. Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; George Venizelos, Assistant Director in Charge, FBI New York Field Office; and Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner, New York City Police Department.

According to the indictment, other court filings, evidence presented to the court in support of Naseer’s extradition, and evidence from the trials of Adis Medunjanin and Mohammed Wali Zazi in the Eastern District of New York, in approximately September 2008, al Qaeda leaders in Pakistan recruited Medunjanin, Najibullah Zazi, and Zarein Ahmedzay, three friends from New York City, to conduct a suicide bombing attack in New York City.

The al Qaeda leaders, including Adnan El-Shukrijumah and Saleh al-Somali, communicated with Zazi about the plot through an al Qaeda facilitator named “Ahmad” in Peshawar, Pakistan. In early September 2009, after Medunjanin, Zazi, and Ahmedzay had selected the New York City subway system as their target, Zazi e-mailed with “Ahmad” in Pakistan about the proper ingredients for the main charge explosive, which included flour and oil. Zazi pleaded guilty to his role in the plot on February 22, 2010. Ahmedzay pleaded guilty on April 23, 2010. Medunjanin was convicted after trial on May 1, 2012.

The investigation by authorities in the United States and United Kingdom revealed that “Ahmad” was also communicating with Naseer. Naseer, like Zazi, was in Peshawar, Pakistan, in November 2008, according to the court filings. After returning to the United Kingdom, Naseer sent messages back and forth to the same e-mail account that “Ahmad” was using to communicate with the American-based al Qaeda cell on behalf of Saleh al-Somali, the indictment and court filings allege. In the messages, Naseer used coded language to refer to different types of explosives. At the culmination of the plot, in early April 2009, Naseer, again using coded language, told “Ahmad” that he was planning a large “wedding” for numerous guests between April 15 and 20, 2009, and that “Ahmad” should be ready. Notably, evidence at Medunjanin’s trial established that “Ahmad” and Zazi had agreed on a similar code to mean the New York City attack was ready to be executed and that Zazi e-mailed Ahmad that “the marriage is ready” just before he drove to New York in early September 2009.

On April 8, 2009, Naseer and several associates were arrested in the United Kingdom. In connection with these arrests, U.K. authorities conducted searches of the plotters’ homes, where they found large quantities of flour and oil, as well as surveillance photographs of public areas in Manchester and maps of Manchester’s city center posted on the wall, with one of the locations from the surveillance photographs highlighted.

On January 30, 2012, three defendants were also convicted in a Norwegian court of plotting a similar terrorist attack in Denmark as part of the same overall multinational al Qaeda conspiracy. During that trial, the United States made available to the Norwegian prosecutors three witnesses who also pleaded guilty to terrorism offenses in the Eastern District of New York: Najibullah Zazi, Zarein Ahmedzay, and Bryant Neal Vinas.

Naseer is charged with providing and conspiring to provide material support to al Qaeda and conspiracy to use a destructive device in relation to the U.K. branch of the plot. He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if convicted of all counts.

“The defendant is one of a long line of terrorist suspects extradited to these shores and this courthouse to face justice for their efforts to wreak havoc here and overseas. As alleged, this defendant was instrumental in one tentacle of an international plot that reached to New York, Norway, and the United Kingdom,” said U.S. Attorney Lynch. “Those responsible for terrorist plots or attacks will be investigated, charged, and prosecuted, whether they are arrested here in the United States, or abroad.” Ms. Lynch also expressed her gratitude to the law enforcement personnel, both domestic and foreign, who took part in the investigation.

“Today’s extradition underscores the importance of international cooperation in disrupting transnational terrorism threats. I thank our counterparts in the United Kingdom for their assistance in this investigation as well as the many U.S. agents, analysts, and prosecutors who helped bring about these charges,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco.

FBI Assistant Director in Charge Venizelos said, “The extradition of Naseer demonstrates not only the long arm of American justice. It also shows the determination and commitment of governments around the world to work in common cause to thwart alleged international terrorist conspiracies. Plotting in one country to do harm in another does not provide cover for terrorists. It makes them targets in two countries.”

Police Commissioner Kelly said, “Here’s to our special relationship. New York and London, and now Manchester, share a history of terrorism and outstanding law enforcement cooperation in bringing those allegedly responsible to justice, as this case illustrates. Al Qaeda has attacked on both sides of the Atlantic, and it has been brought to justice on both shores, too.”

The government’s case is being prosecuted by David Bitkower, James P. Loonam, Berit W. Berger, and Zainab Ahmad of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. Assistance was also provided by Lystra Blake, Associate Director of the Office of International Affairs in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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