Militant Islam Monitor > Articles > "Willing To Die As Martyrs," Seven Charged In Extensive North Carolina Muslim Terror Plot
"Willing To Die As Martyrs," Seven Charged In Extensive North Carolina Muslim Terror Plot
July 28, 2009
"Willing To Die As Martyrs," Seven Charged In Extensive North Carolina Muslim Terror Plot
July 28, 2009 - San Francisco, CA - PipeLineNews.org - On July 22 a federal grand jury indicted seven individuals, charging them with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to murder, kidnap, maim and injure persons abroad.
Named in the indictment are: Daniel Patrick Boyd, 39, a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina, Hysen Sherifi, 24, a native of Kosovo and a U.S. legal permanent resident located in North Carolina, Anes Subasic, 33, a naturalized U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina, Zakariya Boyd, 20, a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina, Dylan Boyd, 22, a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina, Mohammad Omar Aly Hassan, 22, a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina and Ziyad Yaghi, 21, a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina.
The defendants were apprehended on Monday by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies and were then brought to federal court in Raleigh, N.C., where the indictments were unsealed.
About the arrests David Kris, Asst. Attorney Gen. for the National Security Division stated, "The indictment alleges that Daniel Boyd is a veteran of terrorist training camps in Pakistan and Afghanistan who, over the past three years, has conspired with others in this country to recruit and help young men travel overseas in order to kill. Given the weapons allegedly involved in this conspiracy and the seriousness of the charges, the many agents, analysts and prosecutors who were able to bring about this case and safely remove these defendants from our streets deserve special thanks."
U.S. Attorney George E.B. Holding added, "These charges hammer home the point that terrorists and their supporters are not confined to the remote regions of some far away land but can grow and fester right here at home. Terrorists and their supporters are relentless and constant in their efforts to hurt and kill innocent people across the globe. We must be equally relentless and constant in our efforts to stop them."
"The threat that extremists and radicals pose to America and our allies has not dulled or gone away. These arrests today show there are people living among us, in our communities in North Carolina and around the US, that are honing their skills to carry out acts of murder and mayhem. Their ultimate goal is to wage war on freedom and democracy. The FBI and our law enforcement partners are doing all we can to stop them from thriving and successfully attacking again," said Owen D. Harris, Special Agent in Charge of the Charlotte Division of the FBI, adding, "We will remain vigilant, so must the public. If you see or hear something - act - call your local police department or the FBI. September 11th is not a vague memory for us, nor should it be for anyone."
Outlines of the conspiracy:
From 1989 through 1992, Daniel Boyd traveled to Pakistan and Afghanistan where he received military-style training in terrorist training camps for the purpose of engaging in violent jihad. Following this training, he allegedly fought in Afghanistan.
From roughly November 2006 through at least July 2009, Daniel Boyd and the other defendants conspired to provide material support and resources to terrorists, including currency, training, transportation and personnel. They also conspired to murder, kidnap, maim and injure persons abroad during this period. The object of the conspiracy, according to the indictment, was to advance violent jihad, including supporting and participating in terrorist activities abroad and committing acts of murder, kidnapping or maiming persons abroad.
The indictment alleges that, as part of the conspiracy, the defendants prepared themselves to engage in violent jihad and were willing to die as martyrs. They also allegedly offered training in weapons and financing, and helped arrange overseas travel and contacts so others could wage violent jihad overseas.
Overseas Activity:
It is believed that Daniel Boyd traveled to Gaza in March 2006 and attempted to enter Palestine in order to introduce his son to individuals who also believed that violent jihad was a personal religious obligation. Later, in October 2006, defendant Ziyad Yaghi allegedly departed the United States for Jordan to engage in violent jihad.
In June 2007, Daniel Boyd and several other defendants departed the United States for Israel in an effort to engage in violent jihad, but ultimately returned to the United States after failing in their efforts. Subsequent to his return to the United States, Daniel Boyd made false statements twice to federal officials about who he had planned to meet on his trip to Israel.
In February 2008, Daniel Boyd allegedly solicited money to fund the travel of additional individuals overseas to engage in violent jihad and in March 2008, discussed with Anes Subasic preparations to send two individuals abroad for this purpose. He allegedly accepted $500 in cash from defendant Hysen Sherifi to be used to help fund jihad overseas and later showed Sherifi how to operate an AK-47 assault weapon.
In July 2008, Sharifi allegedly departed the United States for Kosovo to engage in violent jihad. According to the indictment, Sharifi later returned to North Carolina in April 2009, for the purpose of soliciting funds and personnel to support the mujihadeen.
Weapons and Training:
The indictment indicates that Daniel Boyd obtained a variety of weapons in furtherance of the conspiracy to murder persons overseas and provide material support to terrorists. These included a Bushmaster M4A3 rifle that Boyd allegedly received illegally via interstate commerce in 2006, as well as an ETA M16 V System C-MAG that he purchased in 2006. In 2007, he allegedly purchased a Ruger mini 14 long gun.
During 2008, the indictment alleges that Boyd purchased a Mossburg 100 ATR .270 rifle, a Llama Camanche III .357 revolver, a Century Arms AK Sporter 7.62 X 39 rifle and a Ruger mini 30 7.62 X 39 rifle. During 2009, Boyd allegedly purchased a Ishmash SAGA .308 rifle, a Century Arms Polish Tantal 5.45 X 39 rifle, a Century Arms C91 rifle .308, a Century Arms M70B1 7.62 X 34 rifle, a Ruger mini 14 5.56 rifle, and a Smith & Wesson MP15 .223 rifle.
The indictment further alleges that in February 2009, Daniel Boyd and his son, Dylan Boyd, knowingly sold a Beretta 9 mm handgun and ammunition to a convicted felon. In addition, the indictment alleges that in June 2009, Daniel Boyd and his son, Zakariya Boyd, used firearms in furtherance of a crime of violence, specifically conspiracy to murder.
Each of the defendants faces potential life imprisonment if convicted of conspiracy to murder, kidnap, maim and injure persons abroad. In addition, conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists carries a maximum 15 year sentence. The charges of receiving a firearm through interstate commerce and selling a firearm to a convicted felon each carry a maximum 10 year sentence. Making false statements in a terrorism investigation carries a maximum 8 year sentence, while possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence carries a consecutive 5 year sentence.
http://www.pipelinenews.org/index.cfm?page=ncterror7.28.09%2Ehtm
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From Suburban D.C. Childhood To Indictment on Terror Charges By Carrie Johnson and Spencer S. HsuWashington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, July 29, 2009 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/28/AR2009072803193.html?hpid=topnews Daniel Patrick Boyd, once a defensive lineman at T.C. Williams High School, is an unlikely symbol of the homegrown terrorist threat. The son of a Marine, Boyd spent his early years in the Washington suburbs living a typical American childhood. Recently, he blended with his family into a picturesque suburb of Raleigh, N.C., where he gardened and was friendly with his neighbors. But law enforcement officials, including four SWAT teams that deployed to Boyd's home this week, point to the Muslim convert as the latest example of a radicalized American who exported jihad. Boyd, 39, is scheduled to appear in federal court in North Carolina on Thursday with his two sons and four other young men he allegedly instructed in militant techniques. A federal grand jury in Raleigh has accused him of conspiring to support terrorists and kill combatants overseas, as well as making false statements to customs and FBI agents about his recent trips to the Middle East, where prosecutors say he introduced his young followers to the life of martyrdom. Boyd is the third American citizen indicted recently on charges surrounding domestic radicalism and overseas targets. A Minnesota man pleaded guilty Tuesday to supporting terrorists in connection with a trip to Somalia to fight alongside militants. Last week, authorities unveiled a guilty plea by a Long Island native who trained in Pakistan before connecting with al-Qaeda operatives seeking to bomb European rail systems. Justice Department officials spoke carefully about the unfolding investigation in North Carolina, partly because at least one young man who decamped for Pakistan this year remains at large. "This case underscores the potential threat that U.S. citizens with foreign fighter experience pose upon returning to the United States, specifically in terms of inciting other U.S.-based individuals to follow their example," said David S. Kris, assistant attorney general for national security. "They return from conflict zones with combat experience, a network of contacts overseas and strong credibility with . . . recruits seeking an authority figure." For Boyd, his arrest follows an unusual path from an Alexandria classroom to the dusty streets of Afghanistan, according to court filings and interviews with friends and neighbors. In the 1980s, Boyd converted to Islam after being inspired by his stepfather, William Saddler, a Washington area lawyer and devout Muslim. Boyd journeyed after high school to Pakistan and Afghanistan to join Islamic resistance fighters battling the Soviet Union. In 1991, he and his brother were arrested in Peshawar, Pakistan, where Boyd spent months fighting an unusual criminal fraud case. He was convicted by an Islamic court of bank robbery and sentenced to lose his right hand and his left foot, until an appeals panel tossed out the verdict. Boyd and his wife, Sabrina, his high school sweetheart, returned to the United States, where they made a home for their three young boys in a quiet corner of North Carolina. Eventually, Boyd devoted himself to instructing young men that "violent jihad was a personal obligation on the part of every good Muslim," according to court papers filed in a criminal case that now threatens to send him to prison for life. Sabrina Boyd issued a statement yesterday through the Muslim American Society in Raleigh describing hers as an "ordinary family" and asking that people not prejudge the criminal case. Daniel Boyd's mother, who lives in the Washington area, declined to comment. The arrests of Boyd, whose beard extends to his chest, his sons Zakariya and Dylan, and four others stunned neighbors in picturesque Willow Spring, a southern suburb of Raleigh. The family lived in a home valued at $171,000, supported by a construction business that Boyd established, according to state records. "They were just normal American kids and a normal American father," said Charles Casale, 46, a neighbor who for years has shared fishing and gardening tips with the Boyds. Daniel Boyd kept a vegetable garden and placed a "Support Our Troops" bumper sticker on his brown pickup truck. In their free time, the boys fished for largemouth bass and catfish from a small green canoe in a neighborhood pond, Casale said. Acquaintances in North Carolina searched for clues that could explain Boyd's recent activities as they were laid out in the court documents. Two years ago, the couple's youngest son, Luqman, died after his car flipped and ejected him. Years earlier, the young family had run into financial trouble so severe that Daniel Boyd filed for bankruptcy protection. The Boyds occasionally attended Friday prayer services at Jamaat Ibad Ar-Rahman, the largest Sunni mosque in Durham. But they broke with the mosque over Daniel Boyd's strict interpretation of Islamic law and practices, according to friends and members of the congregation. Ultimately, the family held prayer services in their home on a cul de sac on Lakeside Circle. Still, Hisham Heda, the chairman of the board at the mosque, said that "in our dealings with Mr. Boyd and his family, we found them to be people of good moral character." Zuhair Osman, 23, another board member, who is close friends with the woman Dylan Boyd married at the mosque last year, said the younger Boyd is a very nice, highly respected young man who never drank, smoke or partied, "but at the same time, he was a little more strict and religious." Dylan Boyd sometimes debated friends about his view that devout Muslims should not be photographed or allow their pictures to be posted on the Internet, Osman said, adding that he was speaking personally and not representing the mosque. Osman added that Daniel Boyd, whom he knew as Saifullah, or "sword of God," had dealt with the FBI for five years, discussing his militant activities in the 1980s but saying he was no longer interested in politics. The FBI "did come to him with pictures of terrorists killed in Afghanistan, and he did recognize some of them. They had worked together and established relationships," Osman said. "He was very aware that he was being watched [by the FBI] in everything he did. . . . He was never afraid." A Joint Terrorism Task Force had been tracking Boyd at least since 2006, monitoring his e-mail and phone calls, according to conversations cited in the indictment. Authorities were interested in Boyd's growing stockpile of armor-piercing assault weapons and his rural training expeditions on the Virginia border with young Muslim men, as well as the networks he used to finance and plan trips overseas. Officials sprang into action Monday after learning that Boyd, his two sons and his wife might be planning a move this year to Jordan, where at least some followers had visited in recent years, according to two sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation continues. Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report.
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