Posted on 05/08/2007 4:58:57 AM PDT by all4one
Terror Arrests in Fort Dix Plot FORT DIX, N.J.
May 8, 2007 - Six ethnic Albanians have been arrested in a plot to storm the Fort Dix installation in Burlington County.
Five of the suspects were arrested in Cherry Hill. They will be arraigned later today in federal court. Officials say it will happen in either in Camden or Newark.
Investigators say the suspects planned to use automatic weapons to storm the base and kill solders. The men were lured into a secret meeting to purchase AK-47s from an arms dealer, who was secretly cooperating with the FBI.
Officials say the suspects worked on a number of targets, including the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, Fort Monmouth in Eatontown, and several Coast Guard stations.
Federal agents made the arrests when the suspects zeroed in on Fort Dix.
Officials say some of the suspects were caught on tape.
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Terror Suspects Arrested In N.J. After FBI Foils Fort Dix Attack
POSTED: 6:41 am EDT May 8, 2007
UPDATED: 7:31 am EDT May 8, 2007
A tip helped authorities arrest six New Jersey men Monday night in connection to an apparent terror cell, according to NBC 10’s sister station WNBC in New York.
Five of them were arrested in Cherry Hill, according to reports.
Investigators said the men planned to use AK-47s to storm Fort Dix and open fire on soldiers and civilians stationed at the New Jersey base, noting that other military locations were scouted by the terrorist cell.
Three of the unnamed suspects are brothers who are all believed to be Islamic radicals, according to sources. Some of the six arrested men were also born in Albania and the former Yugoslavia, but they have spent a significant amount of time in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, according to authorities.
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NEW YORK -- Six men from New Jersey have been arrested in an alleged terror plot against soldiers at Fort Dix, according investigators.
Investigators said the men planned to use automatic weapons to enter Fort Dix and kill as many soldiers as they could at the N.J. base. Fort Dix was just one of several military and security locations allegedly scouted by this group, authorities said.
Investigators told Newschannel 4's Jonathan Dienst that these arrests are the result of a tip to the FBI and use of an informant to track the suspects. The terror suspects traveled over the last several months from New Jersey to the Poconos where they practiced firing automatic weapons, investigators said.
Investigators said the group discussed targeting numerous locations like Dover Air base, Fort Monmouth and several Coast Guard stations before deciding on Fort Dix as their intended target. Fort Dix is run in part by the Army and is a reserve-training center, but active units take part in training, including some which focuses on counter-terrorism....
Thanks for the ping on the details.
I’ve been out of town and now trying to catch up on the latest.
December 22, 2008
NOTE: The following text is a quote:
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/December/08-nsd-1142.html
Five Radical Islamists Convicted of Conspiring to Kill Soldiers at Fort Dix
WASHINGTON—A jury today convicted five men on charges they plotted to kill members of the U.S. military, announced Patrick Rowan, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and Acting U.S. Attorney Ralph J. Marra, Jr.
After 5½ days of deliberations, which began Dec. 17, 2008, the jury convicted Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, brothers Dritan Duka, Shain Duka and Eljvir Duka and Serdar Tatar on count one of the seven-count superseding indictment that charged them with conspiracy to murder members of the U.S. military. The jury acquitted each of defendants of count two, which charged attempt to murder members of the U.S. military.
For the conspiracy conviction only, each of the defendants faces a sentence of any number of years up to life in prison.
The case was tried by Deputy Assistant U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Hammer, Jr., Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Terrorism Unit.
U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler, who presided over the 12-week trial, scheduled sentencing of the three Duka brothers for April 22, 2009. Judge Kugler scheduled sentencing of Shnewer and Tartar on April 23, 2009.
The remaining counts of the superseding indictment, which was returned in January, charged the three Duka brothers, who are illegal immigrants, and Shnewer with firearm offenses; including possession of machine guns. See below for conviction details on each of the defendants.
The defendants’ arrests occurred on May 7, 2007, in Cherry Hill as Dritan and Shain Duka were meeting a confidential government witness to purchase four automatic M-16 rifles and three semi-automatic AK-47 rifles to be used in a future attack on military personnel. The other defendants were arrested at various locations at about the same time.
“Today’s verdicts underscore the need for continued vigilance against homegrown terror threats,” said Assistant Attorney General Rowan. “While these defendants were not members of an international terrorist organization, their involvement in weapons training, their surveillance of domestic targets and their discussions of killing U.S. military personnel posed a serious threat that required the law enforcement disruption and the prosecutions upheld by the jury today.”
“These men planned, trained and ceaselessly talked unambiguously about their intention to ambush and kill U.S. soldiers,” said Marra. “The word should go out to any other would-be terrorists of the homegrown variety that the United States will find you, infiltrate your group, prosecute you and send you to a federal prison for a very long time.”
“Vigilance was the key to disrupting the dangerous terrorists convicted today and we are glad they are off the street,” said Janice K. Fedarcyk, Special Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the FBI. “We appreciate the tip from an alert citizen who reported this suspicious activity to law enforcement. Without tips from concerned citizens or cooperation from our law enforcement partners, it is much more difficult to safeguard our nation and protect the United States from terrorist attack.”
In convicting the defendants, the jury found that one member of the group conducted surveillance at Fort Dix and Fort Monmouth in New Jersey, Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and the U.S. Coast Guard in Philadelphia. The co-conspirator obtained a detailed map of Fort Dix, where they hoped to use assault rifles to kill as many soldiers as possible, according to trial testimony and evidence.
During the trial, the jury viewed secretly recorded videotapes of the defendants preforming small-arms training at a shooting range in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania and watching training videos amongst themselves that included depictions of American soldiers being killed and of known foreign Islamic radicals urging jihad against the United States.
The defendants and the charges on which each was convicted are as follows:
• Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, 23, of Cherry Hill: conspiracy to murder members of the members of the U.S. military, and the attempted possession of AK-47 semi-automatic assault weapons to be used in the attack.
• Dritan Duka, 30 of Cherry Hill: conspiracy to murder members of the U.S. military; possession of machine guns; possession and attempted possession of machine guns in furtherance of a crime of violence; and two counts of possession of firearms by an illegal alien.
• Shain Duka, 27, of Cherry Hill: conspiracy to murder members of the U.S. military; possession of machine guns; possession and attempted possession of machine guns in furtherance of a crime of violence; and two counts of possession of firearms by an illegal alien.
• Eljvir Duka, 25, of Cherry Hill: conspiracy to murder members of the U.S. military, and possession of firearms by illegal aliens. The jury acquitted on one count of possession and attempted possession of machine guns in furtherance of a crime of violence.
• Serdar Tatar, 25, of Philadelphia: conspiracy to murder members of the U.S. military.
A sixth co-defendant, Agron Abdullahu, 26, of Buena Vista Township, Atlantic County, pleaded guilty before Judge Kugler on Oct. 31, 2007, to aiding and abetting the Duka brothers’ illegal possession of weapons. Abdullahu was arrested on May 7, 2007, along with the defendants convicted today. On March 31, 2008, Judge Kugler sentenced Abdullahu to 20 months in federal prison.
The charge of conspiracy to murder members of the U.S. military carries a sentence of any number of years up to life in prison. The charge of possession of a machine gun in furtherance of a crime of violence carries a statutory maximum penalty of 30 years imprisonment. The charge of attempted possession of AK-47 semi-automatic assault weapons to be used in the attack carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment. Each count of unlawful possession of machine guns carries a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison. Each count of being an illegal alien in possession of firearms carries a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison.
Rowan and Marra credited the Special Agents of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division and the FBI South Jersey Joint Terrorism Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Fedarcyk, in Philadelphia, for investigation of the case.
Marra and Fedarcyk also thanked investigators with member agencies of the FBI South Jersey Joint Terrorism Task Force, which comprises ICE’s Philadelphia Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John P. Kelleghan, the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of the Prosecutor Warren W. Faulk, NJ State Police, under the direction of Col. Joseph “Rick” Fuentes, Superintendent, and the Delaware River Port Authority Police, under the direction of Chief Dave McClintock, for their tireless efforts on the investigation.
Additionally, Marra and Fedarcyk would like to thank the following agencies for their assistance and support: the U.S. military services at Fort Dix, Fort Monmouth, Dover Air Force Base, and the U.S. Coast Guard in Philadelphia, along with the Cherry Hill Police Department, Mt. Laurel Police Department, Cherry Hill Fire Department, Camden County Sheriff’s Department, Philadelphia Police Department, Pennsylvania State Police, the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office, and N.J. Homeland Security.
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08-1142
JIHAD WATCH.org (STAR-LEDGER): "FORT DIX JIHAD VIDEO DEPICTS GORY DECAPITATIONS AND JIHADI CELEBRATIONS" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "An FBI language specialist, Gassan Hajjar, then described for jurors what happened next: Using a knife, the captors sliced off the hostages' heads, taking four to six minutes to complete the decapitations, he said. They held the severed heads aloft, placed them back on the bodies and celebrated.") (October 24, 2008)
NOTE: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=52454
Five Convicted of Plotting to Kill Soldiers at Fort Dix
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Dec. 23, 2008 – A federal jury yesterday found five men guilty of conspiracy to kill U.S. soldiers at Fort Dix, N.J., but acquitted them of attempted murder.
After nearly six days of deliberation, the jury rendered the guilty verdict for three brothers — Shain, Eljvir and Dritan Duka — and two other defendants, Mohamad Shnewer and Serdar Tatar. They face a maximum of life in prison, according to a Justice Department news release published yesterday.
Federal prosecutors said the five men, all Muslim immigrants who were arrested in Cherry Hill, N.J., in May 2007, were planning to attack Fort Dix and military personnel.
“Today’s verdicts underscore the need for continued vigilance against homegrown terror threats,” Assistant Attorney General Patrick Rowan stated in the release.
“While these defendants were not members of an international terrorist organization, their involvement in weapons training, their surveillance of domestic targets and their discussions of killing U.S. military personnel posed a serious threat that required the law enforcement disruption and the prosecutions upheld by the jury today,” he said.
The prosecution’s case was based on evidence culled from a 16-month FBI investigation that led to the apprehensions. FBI agents arrested the suspects May 7, 2007, as Dritan and Shain Duka tried to buy three AK-47 assault rifles and four semi-automatic M-16s from a confidential government witness.
“They identified their target, they did their reconnaissance, they had maps, and they were in the process of buying weapons,” Jody Weiss, the special agent in charge of the FBI in Philadelphia, said a day after the arrests.
“Today we dodged a bullet,” Weiss added. “In fact, when you look at the type of weapons this group was trying to purchase, we may have dodged a lot of bullets.”
The FBI’s investigation began January 2006 when a video store representative tipped off officials after a man brought a “disturbing” video to be converted to DVD format.
According to a court complaint described during the arrests, the video “depicted 10 young men who appeared to be in their early twenties shooting assault weapons at a firing range in a militia-like style while calling for jihad and shouting in Arabic ‘Allahu Akbar,’” or God is great.
In addition, the jury viewed secretly recorded videotapes of the defendants performing small-arms training at a shooting range in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania, watching training videos showing the slayings of American soldiers and depicting known foreign Islamic radicals urging jihad against the United States, the release states.
Janice K. Fedarcyk, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division, praised the video store employee-turned-whistleblower.
“Vigilance was the key to disrupting the dangerous terrorists convicted today and we are glad they are off the street,” Fedarcyk states in the release.
At the time of arrest, the Duka brothers, who were born in what was then Yugoslavia, had been living in the United States illegally and operating a roofing company; Shnewar, a Jordanian-born taxi driver, and Tatar, a convenience store clerk born in Turkey, are both legal U.S. residents.
The jury found that one member of the group conducted surveillance at Fort Dix and Fort Monmouth in New Jersey, Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and the U.S. Coast Guard facility in Philadelphia. The co-conspirator obtained a detailed map of Fort Dix, where they hoped to use assault rifles to kill as many soldiers as possible, according to trial testimony and evidence.
Related Sites:
Justice Department News Release
Six Arrested for Plotting to Kill Soldiers at Fort Dix, N.J.
Previously...
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=45946
“Six Arrested for Plotting to Kill Soldiers at Fort Dix, N.J.”
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 8, 2007
Note: This url will expire.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2009/03/judge_denies_appeal_by_fort_di.html
Real-Time News
New Jersey news 24 hours, every day
“Judge denies appeal by Fort Dix terror plotters”
by Joe Ryan/The Star-Ledger
Thursday March 05, 2009, 11:52 AM
SNIPPET: “A federal judge in Camden today rejected arguments from defense lawyers asking to overturn the convictions of five men found guilty of plotting to attack Fort Dix.
The five men, immigrants from Albania, Turkey and Jordan, were convicted in December and face life in prison.”
SNIPPET: “The judge scheduled sentencing for three of the men, brothers Dritan, Shain and Eljvir Duka, April 22. He said he would sentence the other two, Mohamad Shnewer and Serdar Tatar, the next day.”
BLOG:
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/196681.php
March 05, 2009
“Internet a Key to Understanding Home Grown Jihadism”
SNIPPET: “What makes the children of Muslim immigrants — who fled Islamic countries for the opportunities afforded them by American freedoms — become traitors plotting to harm their homeland? One key is that they consume a lot of propaganda. And how is that propaganda consumed? Through the internet.
For example, today a federal judge rejected the appeals of the five homegrown jihadis found guilty in the Fort Dix plot. The author of the story notes this about the men:
The five defendants did not speak during the hearing. After Kugler announced his decision, they traded shouts of “Allah Akbar” — Arabic for “God is great” — with some of their supporters in the court room.”
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