Younger Sibling Plotted to Attack New York City with a
Weapon of Mass Destruction
Brothers Raees Alam Qazi, 22, and Sheheryar Alam Qazi, 32,
both naturalized U.S. citizens from Pakistan, were sentenced today to 35 years
and 20 years in prison for terrorism violations and assaulting two Deputy U.S.
Marshals while in custody, announced Assistant Attorney General for National
Security John P. Carlin, U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern
District of Florida, Director Stacia A. Hylton of the U.S. Marshals Service and
Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Division.
Raees Qazi and Sheheryar Qazi were sentenced by U.S.
District Court Judge Beth Bloom of the Southern District of Florida, and their
prison term will be followed by a term of 10 years and five years of supervised
release, respectively.
“With the sentences handed down today, Raees Qazi and his
brother Sheheryar Qazi are being held accountable for their roles in a plot to
conduct a terrorist attack using a weapon of mass destruction in New York City
and their assault on two federal officers during their pretrial detention,”
said Assistant Attorney General Carlin.
“This case highlights our commitment to pursue any individuals who would
seek to conduct an attack on U.S. soil or to injure law enforcement officials
who risk their lives to protect us. I
want to thank the U.S. Marshals, agents, analysts, and prosecutors who are
responsible for this successful result.”
“Protecting the homeland and our national security remains
our number one priority,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “Today’s sentences demonstrate this Office’s
unwavering commitment to work with our law enforcement partners to combat all
forms of terrorism by proactively finding and prosecuting those who actively
seek to kill or harm innocent citizens in the name of violent extremism.”
“Today’s sentencing of the Qazi brothers represents the
final chapter for two men who wished to bring harm and mass destruction to
Americans on U.S. soil,” said Director Hylton.
“Their sentences demonstrate that justice prevailed. I am proud of our brave men and women who
participated in this process, and thank the prosecutors who worked tirelessly
for this successful conclusion.”
“The threat of a terrorist attack against innocent Americans
is real as demonstrated by the actions of these two brothers,” said Special Agent
in Charge Piro. “The fact that their
terrorist aspirations were cut short didn’t stop Raees and Sheheryar Qazi from
attempting to use potentially lethal force against two U.S. Marshals while they
were in custody. This case highlights
outstanding work and team effort of our South Florida Joint Terrorism Task
Force.”
On March 12, 2015, Raees Alam Qazi pleaded guilty to one
count of conspiring to provide material support and resources to terrorists in
preparation for the use of a weapon of mass destruction, one count of
attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist
organization and one count of conspiring to assault a federal employee. Sherheyar Alam Qazi pleaded guilty to one
count of conspiring to provide material support and resources to terrorists in
preparation for the use of a weapon of mass destruction and one count of
conspiring to assault a federal employee.
The brothers acknowledged during the plea hearing that Raees
Alam Qazi was going to initiate an attack using a weapon of mass destruction in
New York City and that he had been financially and emotionally supported by his
older brother, Sheheryar Alam Qazi, who encouraged him to launch the
attack. Among other things, the brothers
acknowledged that Sheheryar Alam Qazi had encouraged his younger brother to
travel from Pakistan to Afghanistan in 2011, and that when Raees Alam Qazi had
been unsuccessful in his attempt to enter Afghanistan, he returned to his older
brother. The brothers acknowledged that
Raees Alam Qazi had been trying to reach the “guys from Yemen” aka Al Qaeda in
the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) on the internet and that they told him not to come
to Afghanistan because there were enough people, but instead suggested they do
something in the United States. Raees
Alam Qazi admitted that he had taken “hints” from an AQAP online publication
entitled Inspire Magazine, including building an explosive device using
Christmas tree light bulbs. Raees Alam
Qazi also conceded that he had used information in Inspire to communicate with
AQAP, and that his communications with Al Qaeda dealt with his desires to
launch an attack in the United States.
The brothers acknowledged that Raees Alam Qazi travelled to
New York in November 2012 to conduct an attack with a weapon of mass
destruction while Sheheryar Alam Qazi actively misled friends and family
members about Raees Alam Qazi’s true whereabouts and activities. The brothers acknowledged that Raees Alam
Qazi called Sheheryar Alam Qazi from New York to notify him that he had not
been successful in his task. Sheheryar
Alam Qazi encouraged Raees Alam Qazi to return to “practice over here [Florida]
then you may return [to New York] you know…. I will give you complete freedom.”
The brothers additionally admitted their participation in a
conspiracy to assault federal officers.
They conceded that on April 8, 2014, while being moved within the U.S.
Courthouse complex in Miami, they simultaneously punched two Deputy U.S.
Marshals in the face and struggled with them and attempted to use potentially
lethal force on them. Raees Alam Qazi
and Sheheryar Alam Qazi acknowledged that while struggling with the Deputy U.S.
Marshals, the defendants simultaneously exclaimed “Allahu Akbar,” an Arabic exhortation
meaning “God is Great.”
The case was investigated by the FBI’s South Florida Joint
Terrorism Task Force. The case is being
prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen E. Gilbert and Adam S. Fels of the
Southern District of Florida, and Trial Attorney Jennifer E. Levy of the
National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
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