Reply
Tue 8 May, 2007 04:09 pm
Six Arrested in Plot to Storm N.J. Army Base
Group Planned to Use AK-47s to Conduct Commando-Style Assault, Officials Say
By RICHARD ESPOSITO
May 8, 2007
Six members of an alleged homegrown terror cell that intended to use automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades in a commando-style attack on a military base in New Jersey were arrested by the FBI Monday night after a 15-month investigation.
"Their alleged intention was to conduct an armed assault on the army base and to kill as many soldiers as possible," a spokesman for the U.S. attorney in New Jersey said.
The Fort Monmouth Army Base in New Jersey, Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and the Coast Guard building in Philadelphia were allegedly considered as targets and put under surveillance by a New Jersey-based terror group before members settled on Fort Dix, where one cell member allegedly had unfettered access as a pizza delivery man, ABC News has learned.
Three high-level law enforcement sources told ABC News that the investigation into the plot had been ongoing for 15 months. The suspects were described as illegal and legal residents of the U.S. Four of the six suspects were born in Yugoslavia, one was born in Jordan and the other in Turkey.
There was no known direct link between this group and al Qaeda or other organized fundamentalist extremist groups.
The investigation began when a man walked into a photo shop and asked to convert a tape to a DVD, two law enforcement officials said.
The tape contained scenes of men conducting weapons training in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania, using handguns and rifles and firing live ammo, according to the federal complaints unsealed today in New Jersey.
The tape was intended for training purposes and to recruit more members to the group's cause, according to law enforcement officials.
"We need to accumulate experience, and we need to think about how many we need and what they are going to do, and we need to gather the weapons," one suspect, Mohamad Shnewer, was to have told an FBI informant in a recorded conversation, according to the federal compaint.
The technician making the dub of the training tape to DVD saw the content and notified authorities. He told them the content he saw was "distrubing." The case was passed from regional counterterror officials in New Jersey to the Philadelphia FBI Joint Terrorist Task Force.
"The DVD depicted 10 young men who appeared to be in their 20s shooting assault-style weapons at a firing range in a militia-like style while calling for jihad and shouting in Arabic, 'Allah akbar,' ('God is great')," the federal complaint said.
An investigation began, and it was soon determined that the men allegedly intended to assault a military base using automatic weapons. Electronic eavesdropping and a confidential informant determined the men were serious in their intent.
Though the plot did not reach an operational phase, the alleged cell members completed their surveillance and selected Fort Dix as their target.
It was chosen because one cell member's family owned a pizza parlor near the base, and that member was able to enter the base to deliver pizza. The group believed this access would enable its attack to succeed.
Early today about six members of the group were arrested when they met to pick up Russian-style assault rifles described by authorities as AK-47s and U.S. M-16 automatic rifles for the men.
Jihadist propaganda material, including "generalized messages" from Osama bin Laden and other leaders, was seized, authorities said. It had been downloaded from the Internet.
Five of the six defendants are charged with "plotting to kill as many soldiers as possible" in an armed assault on Fort Dix. The sixth defendant is charged with related charges of aiding and abetting the possession of illegal firearms.
Philadelphia Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the FBI said in a statement, "I want to especially salute the unsung hero who took the initiative to report the video to authorities."
Those arrested and charged with plotting to kill the soldiers are Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, 22, Eljvir Duka, 23, Dritan Duka, 28, Shain Duka, 26, Serdar Tatar, 23. Agron Abdullahu, 24, was arrested and charged with aiding and abetting.
A couple of them were illegal immigrants.
McGentrix wrote:A couple of them were illegal immigrants.
and at least one was a US citizen.
Years ago I dated a NYC cop, he believed they caught criminals not because the police were so smart, but because criminals were so stupid.
all of them are morons who would fail at launching an attack on a girlscout camp.
And the Moslems in the US wonder why they are treated with suspicion. I think they had just better be prepared to live with it.
How long till the left blames Bush for this?
How long till some liberal lawyer says that they werent planning anything,that it was a "set-up" by the feds,that these six are gonna sue the govt for violating their privacy by looking at the video the store clerk turned in?
We all know its gonna happen,and when it does the usual "stomp on their hanky,get their panties in a twist,blame the govt crowd" here on A2K will of course defend these six cowards as being the victims.
Exactly the same way you can be counted on like clockwork to defend any dishonorable, dark thing that ever does come to light about Bush and his administration.
MM
I doubt that even the most ardent a2k left wing liberals is going to leap to the defense of these punks. However, as to a lawyer, remember that in the US even those accused of the most heinous of crimes are entitled to a defense. They should be tried and if convicted summarily hung.
With that I expect the anti capital punishment advocates to now begin to howl in unison.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/08/terror/main2773084.shtml
"It doesn't matter to me whether I get locked up, arrested or get taken away," a suspect identified as Serdar Tatar said in another recorded conversation. "Or I die, it doesn't matter. I'm doing it in the name of Allah."
Another suspect, Eljvir Duka, was recorded saying: "In the end, when it comes to defending your religion, when someone is trying to attack your religion, your way of life, then you go jihad."
White House spokesman Tony Snow said Tuesday there is "no direct evidence" that the men had ties to international terrorism.
Sounds like good police work saved the day.
Quote:"The DVD depicted 10 young men who appeared to be in their 20s shooting assault-style weapons at a firing range in a militia-like style while calling for jihad and shouting in Arabic, 'Allah akbar,' ('God is great')," the federal complaint said.
10 in the video plus the cameraman = 11.
6 were arrested.
Green Witch wrote:Years ago I dated a NYC cop, he believed they caught criminals not because the police were so smart, but because criminals were so stupid.
I've believed that all of my adult life. Crime usually does not pay because of the caliber of those who go into the profession.
snood wrote:Exactly the same way you can be counted on like clockwork to defend any dishonorable, dark thing that ever does come to light about Bush and his administration.
Careful,your ignorance is showing.
I dont defend everything Bush has done,nor will I ever.
You actually need to read what I right,instead of assuming.
mysteryman wrote:You actually need to read what I right
sometimes a cigar is just a cigar