- Iyman Faris
Iyman Faris aka Mohammad Rauf [http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/06/19/alqaeda.plea Ohio trucker joined al Qaeda jihad] CNN] (b. on 4 June, 1969 in
Kashmir ) is a formertruck driver fromColumbus, Ohio who was convicted of providing material support toAl Qaeda , for his role in a plot to destroy theBrooklyn Bridge . His name has mistakenly been reported as Lyman Harris.On
22 June ,2003 , theUnited States Department of Justice revealed to "Time" that Faris had served as a double agent for theFBI for months. Faris was detained two weeks afterKhalid Sheikh Mohammed was arrested in Pakistan on1 March . While installed as a double agent for the US Government, Faris sent messages to his terrorist commanders by mobile phone and email from an FBI safe house inVirginia . A senior Bush administration official told "Time", "He was sitting in the safe house making calls for us. It was a huge triumph." [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/06/23/walq23.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/06/23/ixworld.html Captured al-Qa'eda man was FBI spy] ]Early history
Faris first entered the United States in 1994, and married Geneva Bowling the following year. In 1996 he was said to have received a speeding ticket, and
Newsweek reports that in 1997 he overturned his vehicle on a highway entrance ramp.Faris became a U.S. citizen in 1999, and allegedly returned to
Pakistan the following year, and moved along toAfghanistan ,where he is accused of having metOsama bin Laden .While in the region, documents provided to the court show that Faris was asked to investigate the possibility of using an
ultralight aircraft as an "escape plane" for bin Laden. He used aninternet cafe inKarachi, Pakistan to research ultralights and purchased 2000sleeping bag s.Troubled life
At some point Faris was counseled by a local
imam forsuicidalism , and tried to jump off a bridge in Columbus before he was restrained and taken for apsychiatric evaluation . [http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=129090&page Officials Search for Terrorist Next Door] ABC News]His five-year marriage ended in 2000, and he lived with a friend for several weeks, while looking for a new place to live - NBC reported a
drunk driving conviction against him during this time. [http://www.nbc4i.com/news/2282954/detail.html Cleric: Terrorist Claimed He Was Possessed] NBC News]Faris' ex-wife later said he had suffered from hearing imaginary voices, and sudden bouts of believing that somebody was choking him.
Brooklyn Bridge plot
In late 2001, while in Pakistan, Faris went to a travel agency to have expired airline tickets to
Yemen re-issued for several unknown colleagues. Since he wasn't the original purchaser, he claimed to be a preacher fromTablighi Jamaat [http://www.muslimnews.co.uk/news/print_version.php?article=5280 Muslim "missionary" (sic) group draws new scrutiny in U.S.] The Muslim News]In early 2002, Faris was introduced to an operative identified only as "C-2", and learned of a plot allegedly involving the simultaneous destruction of the
Brooklyn Bridge by cutting through cables withblowtorch es, and a second group that wouldderail a train inWashington D.C. .Faris' investigations into obtaining the necessary tools for the dual-operation involved asking a friend where he might purchase welding equipment, and researching the structure of the bridge on the internet. He concluded that the operation was unlikely, and sent a message back to Pakistan calling off the plot, stating that "The weather is too hot".
Working for FBI
On March 19 2003, Faris was visited by two
FBI agents and an anti-terror officer, who confronted him with testimony fromKhalid Sheikh Mohammed , and the results of an intercepted telephone call. Faris was reportedly friendly and accommodating, and agreed to let the agents search his apartment the following day. [http://www.hvk.org/articles/0603/173.html Al Qaeda in America: The Enemy Within] Newsweek]He was then granted a deal to work as a double agent, reporting to the FBI. He was ordered to leave his home in Columbus, and stay at a
safe house in Virginia from which he would appear to continue discussions with his contacts, reporting the information back to the authorities.Fact|date=February 2007Criminal charges
Faris was represented at trial by attorney
Frederick Sinclair . OnMay 1 ,2003 , Faris pled guilty to both charges, for both conspiracy, and providing material support toAl Qaeda . The documents relating to the charges were not unsealed untilJune 19 . Shortly after this, it was revealed that Faris had in fact been adouble agent working under orders from theFBI [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/06/23/walq23.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/06/23/ixworld.html Captured al-Qa'eda man was FBI spy] The Telegraph] . Also in May, Faris had been stopped for speeding, a $200 fine, in Delaware County. [http://www.nbc4i.com/news/2272042/detail.html Report: Alleged Al-Qaida Member Sought In Columbus] NBC News]His sentencing was due
August 1 , but delayed. OnSeptember 25 he sought to withdraw hisguilty plea claiming that while he admitted to meeting with Khalid, he had merely been seeking information about Al-Qaeda for a book he wanted to write. He argued that Khalid was giving false information to authorities as revenge, for Faris refusing to be recruited into Al-Qaeda by the lieutenant. The appeal was disallowed [http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1:82487798/Man+Tied+to+al%2DQaida+Renegs+Guilty+Plea.html?refid=ip_hf Man Tied to al-Qaeda Renegs Guilty Plea] HighBeam Research] . On28 October he was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment by District Court JudgeLeonie Brinkema . [http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2003/October/03_crm_589.htm Iyman Faris Sentenced For Providing Material Support To Al Qaeda] United States Department of Justice]According to the
New York Times , the plot was uncovered with assistance from the NSA eavesdropping program. This led to Faris' new lawyer David B. Smith announcing that they were looking into the potential for a directlawsuit againstGeorge W. Bush who personally authorized the illegal wiretaps.In 2004,
Nuradin Abdi , charged with plotting to detonate explosives inshopping centre s, said that Faris had picked him up fromPort Columbus International Airport . [http://www.iwar.org.uk/news-archive/2004/06-14.htm Somali Native Charged in a Bomb Plot, Ashcroft Says] U.S. Department of State International Information Programs]External links
*http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/faris/usfaris603criminf.pdf
* [http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2003/October/03_crm_589.htm Iyman Faris Sentenced for Providing Material Support to Al Qaeda] Press Release, "Department of Justice", October 28, 2003
* [http://nytimes.com/2005/12/16/politics/16program.html? Bush Lets U.S. Spy on Callers Without Courts] James Risen and Eric Lichtblau, "New York Times ", December 16, 2005 (subscription)References
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