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U.S. NEWSTuesday 21 April 2015
Six from US charged with trying to join Islamic State
AMY FORLITI when they were stopped. stretching back months into United States Attorney Andrew Luger, right, and FBI special
Associated Press Charged are brothers Mo- the recruitment of Western- agent Richard Thornton explain the criminal complaint charg-
ST. PAUL, Minnesota (AP) hamed Abdihamid Farah, ers by IS. ing six Minnesota men with terrorism at a news conference in
— Six Minnesota men have 21, and Adnan Abdihamid Authorities said earlier that Minneapolis, Monday April 20, 2015.
been charged with terror- Farah, 19; Abdurahman a handful of Minnesota
ism in a criminal complaint Yasin Daud, 21; Zacharia residents have traveled to (AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King)
unsealed Monday, the lat- Yusuf Abdurahman, 19; Syria to fight with militants in
est Westerners accused of Hanad Mustafe Musse, 19; the past year, and at least It also said when agents the newest complaint —
traveling or attempting to and Guled Ali Omar, 20. All one has died. went to the younger Mohamed Farah, Abdu-
travel to Syria to join the Is- are Somali-Americans, au- The Minneapolis area is Omar’s house after he was rahman and Musse — were
lamic State group. thorities said.” home to the largest con- stopped in San Diego in stopped at a New York City
The six, whom authorities These were focused men centration of Somali im- November, another broth- airport in November along
described as friends who who were intent on joining migrants in the U.S. Since er, Mohamed Ali Omar, with 19-year-old Hamza
met secretly to plan their a terrorist organization,” 2007, more than 22 young threatened them. Ahmed, but they were not
travels, are accused of Minnesota U.S. Attorney Somali men have also trav- Three of those charged in charged until now.q
conspiracy to provide ma- Andy Luger said at a news eled from Minnesota to
terial support and attempt- conference Monday. Somalia to join the militant
ing to provide material sup- The six were arrested Sun- group al-Shabab.
port to a foreign terrorist day in Minneapolis and San Omar’s older brother,
organization. Diego and are scheduled Ahmed Ali Omar, was
The complaint says the men to make initial appearanc- among those who joined
planned to reach Syria by es in federal court on Mon- al-Shabab, leaving Minne-
flying to nearby countries day. sota in December 2007, ac-
from Minneapolis, San Di- They are the latest peo- cording to the complaint.
ego or New York City, and ple from Minnesota to be Ahmed Omar remains a fu-
lied to federal investigators charged in an investigation gitive.
New York man who plotted to
join terror group gets 25 years
FRANK ELTMAN United States. Once home,
Associated Press prosecutors say, Zea con-
CENTRAL ISLIP, New York tinued participating in the
(AP) — A suburban New conspiracy. He was arrest-
York man who was thwart- ed in October 2013.
ed in his attempt to fly to U.S. District Court Judge
Yemen to join a Middle Sandra Feuerstein rejected
Eastern terrorist group and an appeal for lenience
then admitted continuing from Zea’s attorney, Marc
to plot with others to assist Bogatin, who argued that
them was sentenced Mon- despite the guilty plea,
day to 25 years in prison. his client had not actu-
Marcos Alonso Zea, 26, ally committed any violent
pleaded guilty in Septem- acts that would require him
ber to attempting to pro- to receive the maximum
vide material support to al- penalty. Had he gone to
Qaida in the Arabian Pen- trial, Zea could have faced
insula, also known as Ansar up to life in prison. Bogatin
al-Sharia, and obstruction suggested that Zea be sen-
of justice. tenced to about 10 years in
Federal prosecutors said prison.
the man flew to London on Feuerstein appeared du-
his way to Yemen in Janu- bious at that contention,
ary 2012. He was rejected noting that Zea admitted
by customs officials in Lon- wanting to assist the terror
don and returned to the group.q