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American Man Accused of Aiding Al Qaeda Extradited to U.S.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
NEW YORK - An American student arrested last year in London for allegedly
providing Al Qaeda fighters with equipment to attack American soldiers was
in federal custody Saturday.
Syed Hashmi, 27, arrived in the U.S. late Friday, said U.S. Attorney Michael
J. Garcia. Hashmi is the first terror suspect extradited to the United
States by British authorities.
The suspect, known to his associates as "Fahad," was indicted in May 2006
for allegedly supplying the unspecified equipment for Al Qaeda "to fight
against United States forces in Afghanistan."
He was also charged with agreeing to help others provide military gear for
Al Qaeda to use in Pakistan, the indictment said. The conspiracy to support
the terrorist group behind the World Trade Center attack operated between
January 2004 and May 2006, the indictment said.
"Syed Hashmi aided the enemy by providing military gear to Al Qaeda," said
Mark Mershon, assistant director-in-charge of the FBI's New York office.
The Pakistani native, who is an American citizen, had lived in Britain for
three years before his June 6, 2006, arrest as he boarded a flight to
Pakistan at Heathrow Airport. He only spoke to confirm his name and date of
birth at a subsequent London court hearing where he refused consent for
extradition.
In March, the British High Court ruled against Hashmi in his legal battle,
rejecting his claim that the U.S. arrest warrants were flawed.
Hashmi is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday before U.S. District Judge
Loretta A. Preska.
The former Queens resident faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted of
all charges in the three-count indictment, including the top count of
conspiring to contribute funds, goods or services to the terrorist group.
Hashmi was reportedly associated with another Queens man, Mohammed Junaid
Babar, who pleaded guilty in August 2004 to smuggling night-vision goggles,
money and military supplies to an Al Qaeda official establishing a "jihad
training camp" in Pakistan. The Hashmi indictment referred to the prior
arrest of an unidentified co-conspirator.
Babar, a U.S. citizen of Pakistani descent, acknowledged meeting with the
terrorist official near the Afghanistan border - in the same area where the
gear provided by Hashmi was brought, according to the pending indictment.
American Man Accused of Aiding Al Qaeda Extradited to U.S.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
NEW YORK - An American student arrested last year in London for allegedly
providing Al Qaeda fighters with equipment to attack American soldiers was
in federal custody Saturday.
Syed Hashmi, 27, arrived in the U.S. late Friday, said U.S. Attorney Michael
J. Garcia. Hashmi is the first terror suspect extradited to the United
States by British authorities.
The suspect, known to his associates as "Fahad," was indicted in May 2006
for allegedly supplying the unspecified equipment for Al Qaeda "to fight
against United States forces in Afghanistan."
He was also charged with agreeing to help others provide military gear for
Al Qaeda to use in Pakistan, the indictment said. The conspiracy to support
the terrorist group behind the World Trade Center attack operated between
January 2004 and May 2006, the indictment said.
"Syed Hashmi aided the enemy by providing military gear to Al Qaeda," said
Mark Mershon, assistant director-in-charge of the FBI's New York office.
The Pakistani native, who is an American citizen, had lived in Britain for
three years before his June 6, 2006, arrest as he boarded a flight to
Pakistan at Heathrow Airport. He only spoke to confirm his name and date of
birth at a subsequent London court hearing where he refused consent for
extradition.
In March, the British High Court ruled against Hashmi in his legal battle,
rejecting his claim that the U.S. arrest warrants were flawed.
Hashmi is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday before U.S. District Judge
Loretta A. Preska.
The former Queens resident faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted of
all charges in the three-count indictment, including the top count of
conspiring to contribute funds, goods or services to the terrorist group.
Hashmi was reportedly associated with another Queens man, Mohammed Junaid
Babar, who pleaded guilty in August 2004 to smuggling night-vision goggles,
money and military supplies to an Al Qaeda official establishing a "jihad
training camp" in Pakistan. The Hashmi indictment referred to the prior
arrest of an unidentified co-conspirator.
Babar, a U.S. citizen of Pakistani descent, acknowledged meeting with the
terrorist official near the Afghanistan border - in the same area where the
gear provided by Hashmi was brought, according to the pending indictment.
