(I searched for every keyword I could think of, so sorry if it's already posted.)
The informant, identified as Michael Hamdani, who was arrested in Canada in late October 2002, created the story about 19 men who were seeking false passports in an attempt to get himself off the hook on criminal charges he was facing in the United States, sources said.
Based on Hamdani's information, the FBI issued an alert that launched an all-out effort by law enforcement officials, who feared terrorists might be seeking to attack Americans during New Year's celebrations.
The FBI posted pictures of five of the men on its Web site, prompting calls and sightings of the men from around the country. One of the men later turned up in Pakistan, and said he had no idea how the FBI got his picture.
According to the story investigators originally got, the men entered the United States from Canada using phony British passports forged by a Pakistani smuggling ring.
The FBI discovered that the information about the infiltrators was a hoax during an interrogation of one of the members of the document ring in Pakistan, sources said.
Alert Sparked Lockdown
The alert was part of information that led officials to shut down New York's harbor to all ships except emergency vessels from New Year's Eve through New Year's Day, and to ban vehicles from roads alongside the harbor.
Investigators also raided six locations in Brooklyn and Queens on Dec. 30 as part of an ongoing investigation into the ring. The FBI had released pictures of five men, and President Bush authorized an all-points bulletin to find them.
"We need to know why they have been smuggled into the country and what they're doing in the country," Bush told reporters at the time.
The FBI had warned that the names and ages of the men could be fictitious. They were identified as Abid Noraiz Ali, 25; Mustafa Khan Owasi, 33; Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, 21; Adil Pervez, 19 and Akbar Jamal, 28.
The man pictured as Owasi later came forward in Pakistan and said he had once tried to get a fake passport, but had been caught and remained in his country. His real name was Mohammed Asghar.
The informant, Hamdani, 44, was already facing fraud charges in Canada, after an October raid near Toronto uncovered hundreds of fake passports, immigration documents, and counterfeit traveler's checks for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
There are outstanding fraud warrants for Hamdani from the FBI in New York and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. It was unclear whether he would face any additional charges.
Figured I'd just go ahead and get that out of the way so we can all get past the flinching. You know somebody is gonna find it out there somewhere.
***NATIONAL POST.com (National Post, with files from Reuters): "B.C. SIGHTING ADDS TWIST TO MAN HUNT Entered From Canada: FBI Interviews Nurse Who Reported Seeing Two Suyspects On Ferry" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "After the ferry arrived, she said another man, whom she now believes was Mr. Pervez, was taking photographs of the facility with a digital camera he held at chest height. "He continued to take photographs of the entrance to the ferry terminal, the ticket area and baggage area and escalator. He photographed the entire area -- and a tourist would just not want photos of that for souvenirs," she said. "It was pouring rain and I thought, Why is he photographing the entrance to the ferry? It was unnerving to watch. He must have taken, easily, two dozen photographs. He then, together with another fellow, lifted a fairly large container -- about three feet by four feet -- into a van. "The box bothered me because of the way it was wrapped and also the unusual size. It was poorly and cheaply wrapped. It looked like it was cardboard and wrapped in wrinkled brown paper and duct tape. I just found it odd. It took two of them to get it into the van."") (123102)
THE STAR.com (CANADIAN PRESS): "FBI HUNT STARTED AFTER TORONTO MAN'S ARREST: CBC" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Michael John Hamdani and another man were charged with committing fraud over $5,000 after police in Brampton, Ont., discovered the fake passports and phoney travellers' cheques. International police forces were contacted after detectives found $600,000 worth of phoney Thomas Cook and American Express travellers' cheques, fake Pakistan drivers' licences, counterfeit passports, stacks of passport photos, fakes of Canada's new permanent resident cards and printing machinery. Indian consulate officials were also called in after fake gold leaf stamped passports of Canada and India were seized by fraud squad officers. A man was initially arrested on suspicion of buying household furnishings and appliances with fake American travellers' cheques allegedly identified himself with a counterfeit driver's licence.") (January 1, 2003)
THE PLAIN DEALER (AP): "PASSPORT PROBE SPURS FBI MANHUNT" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Washington - Information from a passport-smuggling investigation set off a nationwide search for five men of Middle Eastern origin who may have entered the United States from Canada on Christmas Eve, an FBI official said yesterday. A White House spokesman said the intelligence came from an anti-terrorism investigation. However, the official, and an FBI spokesman, said they could not link - or rule out - a connection to a terrorist plot or cell.") (123102)
***NATIONAL POST.com: "FBI HUNTING FOR FIVE FROM CANADA Agency Believes Men Crossed Border from North, Have Information on Terrorist Threat" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Ottawa has faced sharp criticism on its immigration policies since Ahmed Ressam, an Algerian who had claimed refugee status in Canada, was stopped by a U.S. border guard in 1999 trying to enter the state of Washington from British Columbia with a trunkload of explosives. He was later found to be a member of a Montreal cell of the Algerian Armed Islamic Group, which has strong ties to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, and was convicted of conspiring to blow up Los Angeles International Airport. There have also been calls to tighten immigration procedures after it was recently revealed that growing numbers of criminal and suspected terrorists were allowed into Canada last year on special permits issued by the federal government. At least 11 people who authorities believe have engaged in "terrorism, espionage or subversion by force" were granted permits that let them enter Canada despite having backgrounds that would normally keep them out -- a number that increased from two in 2000. Another 600 people convicted of a serious crime here or abroad were also among those admitted in 2001, up from 377 in 1999.") (123002)
****FBI.gov - SEEKING INFORMATION: POSTER (Please click here NOW to view photos and read the press release.) (PRESS RELEASE SNIPPET: ""The Federal Bureau of Investigation is seeking the public's assistance in determining the whereabouts of the following individuals:ABID NORAIZ ALI, DOB AUGUST 15, 1977
IFTIKHAR KHOZMAI ALI, DOB SEPTEMBER 20, 1981
MUSTAFA KHAN OWASI, DOB NOVEMBER 12, 1969
ADIL PERVEZ, DOB DECEMBER 12, 1983
AKBAR JAMAL, DOB NOVEMBER 1, 1974The above identified individuals, whose names and dates of birth may be fictitious, are believed to have entered the United States illegally on or about December 24, 2002. Although the FBI has no specific information that these individuals are connected to any potential terrorist activities, based upon information developed in the course of on-going investigations, the FBI would like to locate and question these persons.") (122902)
***THE STAR.com - THE TORONTO STAR (CANADIAN PRESS): Ottawa. "CANADA ALLOWS IMPORT OF BOMB BOOK" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The federal government has approved the importation of a book that gives detailed instructions for making bombs and blowing up bridges, the Ottawa Citizen reported yesterday. Even the author of The Anarchist Cookbook has renounced it as "misguided and potentially dangerous." But the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency says there is nothing to prevent its sale in Canada because it violates neither the hate law nor obscenity law, the newspaper reported.") (121502)
***FBI.gov: SEEKING INFORMATION: "AMER EL-MAATI" akas "Amro Badr Eldin Abou El-Maati, Amro Badr Abouelmaati" (SEEKING INFORMATION POSTER SNIPPET: "Amer El-Maati is being sought in connection with possible terrorist threats in the United States."..."SHOULD BE CONSIDERED ARMED AND DANGEROUS")
***FBI.gov: MOST WANTED TERRORISTS: "IMAD FAYEZ MUGNIYAH" aka "Hajj" (WANTED POSTER SNIPPETS: "Mugniyah is the alleged head of the security apparatus for the terrorist organization, Lebanese Hizballah."..."The Rewards For Justice Program, United States Department of State, is offering a reward of up to $25 million for information leading directly to the apprehension and/or conviction of Imad Fayez Mugniyah."..."SHOULD BE CONSIDERED ARMED AND DANGEROUS")
PAK TODAY.com - PAKISTAN TODAY: "THE FRANCHISING OF HEZBOLLAH" by Avi Davis (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Western intelligence has now revealed a high level of cooperation between Bin Laden and Imad Muganiyeh, the Hezbullah terrorist who masterminded some of Hezbollah's most spectacular atrocities and kidnappings in Lebanon. Reports have Muganiyeh first meeting with Bin Laden as early as 1995 and those meetings have continued. More than this, since al-Qaida fled Afghanistan at the end of last year, the Sunday Telegraph reports, between 80 and 100 al- Qaida fighters were provided with false passports by Hezbollah before being relocated to southern Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The same report acknowledges that Hezbollah, working hand in hand with al-Qaida, has set up cells in the Far East - including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore. It is well known that Hezbollah has operated in Gaza and the West Bank for years, but the recent revelation by the Shin Bet in Israel that al- Qaida has now also joined them there, is chilling evidence of a level of cooperation previously unsuspected. Such news comes as a dire warning to American, Israeli and Jewish communities throughout the world.") (122702)
ALBAWABA.com: "IS HIZBULLAH INVISIBLE LEADER INVOLVED IN ACTIVITIES IN CANADA?" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "In the United States, authorities believe that perhaps one of the world's most wanted men is behind the Canadian organization, which has raised funds, falsified documents and purchased military equipment for Hizbullah. In Washington, officials currently suspect that the agents sent to Canada to gather support for the Hizbullah work for Mugniyah, a top-level Hizbullah leader and the suspected mastermind of numerous attacks worldwide.") (120102)
stepping back in time...US DOJ.gov - Attorney General Transcript (TRANSCRIPT SNIPPET: "As of last week, we had identified four of the individuals: Ramzi Binalshibh, Abd Al-Rahim, Muhammad Sa'id Ali Hasan, and Khalid Ibn Muhammad Al-Juhani. At that time, the identity of the fifth suspected terrorist remained unknown. Over the last week, we've received hundreds of leads from conscientious citizens across the nation and around the world. With these leads and further analysis of evidence recovered from the rubble of Muhammad Atef's house in Afghanistan, we have gained additional information about the fifth suspected terrorist. The name of the fifth terrorist is Al Rauf bin al Habib bin Yousef al-Jiddi. Al-Jiddi, who is a Canadian citizen, was born in Tunisia and is 36 years of age. He has black hair; is approximately 5 feet 10 inches tall and may weigh approximately 220 pounds. We identified al-Jiddi through discovery of a suicide letter found in the ruins of the Atef residence by the U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan. The letter, which is still being fully analyzed, was recently translated. In addition, the Canadian government assisted us by identifying Al-Jiddi. We have also identified an associate who may be traveling with Al-Jiddi. His name is Faker Boussora. He is 37 years of age, is approximately five feet, eight inches and weighs approximately 160 to 170 pounds, has a round face and prominent ears. We believe Boussora may also be involved in a martyrdom mission. Boussora is also a Canadian citizen, born in Tunisia. The FBI has alerted law enforcement authorities across the United States and is also working closely with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Both individuals should be considered extremely dangerous.) (NOTE: See photos in the FBI.gov - Seeking Information: "Martyrdom Messages.") (January 25, 2002)
WASHINGTON TIMES.com (AP): Islamabad, Pakistan. "AFGHAN WARLORD TO AID AL-QAEDA" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "An Afghan rebel leader yesterday said that his forces have allied with Taliban and al Qaeda fugitives, and that a "holy war" would be stepped up to target international forces and peacekeepers. "We are together" with the fugitive fighters, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar said in a Pashto-language message distributed in Pakistan by his followers.") (122602)