2009 Bronx terrorism plot: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 09:34, 13 May 2024

Revision as of 13:23, 15 May 2024

Line 31:

On May 20, 2009, [[Law enforcement in the United States|US law enforcement]] arrested four men in connection with a fake plot concocted by a [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI) informant to shoot down military airplanes flying out of an [[Air National Guard]] base in [[Newburgh (town), New York|Newburgh, New York]], and blow up two [[synagogues]] in the [[Riverdale, Bronx|Riverdale]] community of [[the Bronx]] using weapons supplied by the FBI.<ref name="guardian1">{{cite news |author = Harris, Paul |title=Newburgh Four: poor, black, and jailed under FBI 'entrapment' tactics|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/dec/12/newburgh-four-fbi-entrapment-terror|work=[[The Guardian]] |date=December 12, 2011|access-date=March 24, 2012}}</ref><ref name="guardian2">{{cite news |author = Harris, Paul |title=The ex-FBI informant with a change of heart: 'There is no real hunt. It's fixed'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/mar/20/fbi-informant|work=[[The Guardian]] |date=March 20, 2012|access-date=March 24, 2012}}</ref><ref name="csmonitor1">{{cite web|last=Peter |first=Tom A. |url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0521/p06s04-duts.html |title=New York terror plotters wanted to 'do jihad' |publisher=csmonitor.com |access-date=May 21, 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090524221948/http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0521/p06s04-duts.html |archivedate=May 24, 2009 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref><ref name="nyt">{{cite news | last = Hernandez | first = Javier C. |author2= Sewell Chan | title = N.Y. Bomb Plot Suspects Acted Alone, Police Say | work=[[The New York Times]] | date = May 21, 2009 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/22/nyregion/22terror.html | access-date =May 21, 2009| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140724081544/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/22/nyregion/22terror.html| archivedate=July 24, 2014| url-status= live}}</ref> The group was led by Shahed Hussain, a Pakistani criminal who was working for the FBI to avoid deportation for having defrauded the [[New York State Department of Motor Vehicles]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/09/nyregion/limo-owner-fbi-informant-shahed-hussain.html|title = Limo Company Owner in Crash Revealed as F.B.I. Informant, Recruiter of Terrorists, Fraudster|newspaper = The New York Times|date = October 9, 2018|last1 = Newman|first1 = Andy}}</ref> Hussain has never been charged in the United States with any terrorism related offenses and was paid nearly {{Currency|100,000|US}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2011/07/shahed-hussain-fbi-informant/|title = Timeline: The Making of an FBI Superinformant}}</ref> by the FBI for his work on this plot.

The FBI's use of twoseemingly affluent informants promising luxury goods, andlarge offerssums of money, and foodgenerous incentivesfavors to the four menlow-income in the case hasdefendants led to accusations that the FBIagency had engaged in [[entrapment]].<ref name="guardian1" /><ref name="guardian2" /> On August 23, 2013, by a 2 two-to 1-one vote, an appeal to overturn the convictions was denied by a Manhattan appeals court. Judge [[Jon O. Newman]] cited James Cromitie's statements as proof of intent. In [[Dissenting opinion|dissent]], the Chief Judge [[Dennis Jacobs]] said there was scarce evidence of previous intent and that Cromitie was "badgered" into joining the plot. All three judges unanimously rejected the entrapment claims by the three other defendants and rejected all four defendants’ arguments that their convictions should be overturned on grounds of government misconduct.<ref name="auto">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/24/nyregion/appeals-court-upholds-convictions-of-men-in-bronx-synagogue-plot.html|title=Convictions in Synagogue Bombing Plot Upheld|first=Benjamin|last=Weiser|newspaper=The New York Times|date=August 23, 2013|publisher=}}</ref> In July 2023, Judge [[Colleen McMahon]] ordered the [[compassionate release]] of three of the conspirators, whosaying she saidthey had only participated because Cromitie promised to pay them.<ref name=2023release/> In January 2024, Judge McMahon also ordered the release of Cromitie, the last remaining defendant in prison.<ref name=ap-2024/>

==Background==

Line 108:

In 2022, [[U.S. Representative]]s [[Elise Stefanik]] and [[Paul Tonko]] called on the FBI to reveal whether it had any knowledge of Shahed Hussain's activities with the limousine company before the crash. At an April 2022 hearing of the [[House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence|House Intelligence Committee]], Stefanik questioned FBI director [[Christopher A. Wray]] about whether Hussain's history as an informant may have led the bureau to protect him from consequences for the limousine company's extensive history of regulatory violations, but Wray refused to answer directly, citing confidentiality concerns. In August, Stefanik told ''[[Fox News]]'' that she had not received any response from the bureau, and a spokeswoman for Tonko stated likewise when asked by the ''[[Albany Times Union]]''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Rulison|first=Larry|title=Stefanik continues to slam FBI over Schoharie limo crash case|url=https://www.timesunion.com/business/article/Stefanik-continues-to-slam-FBI-over-Schoharie-17392078.php|newspaper=[[Albany Times Union]]|date=August 23, 2022|access-date=August 24, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |author=<!--Not stated--> |title=Stefanik Demands Answers from FBI Director Wray on Schoharie County Limo Crash|url=https://stefanik.house.gov/2022/3/stefanik-demands-answers-from-fbi-director-wray-on-schoharie-county-limo-crash|___location=[[Washington, DC]]|publisher=Rep. [[Elise Stefanik]]|date=April 1, 2022|access-date=August 25, 2022}}</ref>

On July 27, 2023, a federal judge in the S.D.N.Y. granted a motion by 3 of the 4 defendants for compassionate release. ''[[The New York Times]]'' was unable to locate Shahed Hussain for comment, saying he was believed to be in Pakistan.<ref name="2023release" />On January 19, 2024, McMahon ordered the compassionate release of Cromitie, the last defendant still in prison, calling his alleged leadership "inconceivable" and calling Hussain "very unpleasant" and a "villain."<ref name=ap-2024>{{Cite web |date=2024-01-20 |title=Judge orders release of 'Newburgh Four' defendant and blasts FBI's role in terror sting |url=https://apnews.com/article/newburgh-four-terrorism-sting-fbi-compassionate-release-cromitie-40f7e967468de02b4b7ec2d331b0511e |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref>

==See also==