Akayed Ullah, 27, of Brooklyn, New York, and a lawful
permanent resident from Bangladesh, has been charged in the U.S. District Court
for the Southern District of New York in connection with Ullah’s attempted
detonation of a bomb in a subway terminal near the New York Port Authority Bus
Terminal in New York City on Dec. 11. At
least three people were injured as a result of the detonation.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Acting Assistant Attorney
General for National Security Dana J. Boente, Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim
for the Southern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge William F.
Sweeney Jr., of the FBI’s New York Field Office and Commissioner James P.
O’Neill of the NYPD made the announcement.
Ullah will be presented before the Honorable Katharine H. Parker.
"The Department of Justice is relentless in taking on
the terrorist threat," said Attorney General Sessions. "In my time back at the Department,
nothing has impressed me more. Since
9/11, the Department has convicted more than 500 criminals of terrorism-related
offenses, and the FBI has open terrorism investigations in every state. To make law enforcement’s job easier,
however, Congress must finally fix our broken immigration system so that we
admit to this country those who are likely to succeed, not violent criminals,
gang members, terrorists, or their sympathizers. The fact that somebody won a
lottery or is someone’s relative tells us nothing about their ability to
assimilate. Nevertheless, the Department
of Justice will prosecute this case and every other case to the fullest extent
of the law, and we will bring those who threaten America to justice."
“Yesterday, in the heart of rush hour, as thousands came
into New York City through the Port Authority Bus Terminal, Akayed Ullah
allegedly came with a hate-filled heart and an evil purpose: to murder as many
innocent people as he could and blow himself up in the process, all in support
of the vicious terrorist cause of ISIS,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kim. “Although yesterday he allegedly stood in the
tunnels under Port Authority plotting to kill, today he stands charged with
federal crimes of terrorism. Those
alleged terrorists who target New York City do so because they feel threatened
by the strength of our spirit, the height of our ambition and the breadth of
our freedom. They come seeking to sow
hate, fear and terror. But in New York
City, they find instead strength, resilience and hope. Like many before him, Akayed Ullah will also
find another great American virtue: justice.
That justice will be tough, it will be fair and it will be swift.”
“Akayed Ullah let loose his plan to conduct a mass casualty
attack, setting off a pipe bomb, strapped to his body, inside a New York City
subway terminal, as we allege today,” said Assistant Director in Charge
Sweeney. Like many others before him, we
believe Ullah was inspired by a group that exploits technology in an effort to
spread a violent ideology, effectively convincing sympathizers to commit
terrorist acts worldwide. The nature of
this particular strain of the terrorism threat can often mean evaluating
behavior that doesn’t mean anything until you combine it with other pieces of
intelligence. We rely heavily upon the
community’s assistance to accomplish that task.”
“The act of terror committed in New York City yesterday
accomplished nothing,” said Commissioner O’Neill. “It has not changed our way of life. It was a
cowardly act, fueled by a false sense of purpose — motivated by propaganda in
the shadows of the internet. What is
clear is the resolve of New Yorkers to live in a free society, devoid of
fear. I want to commend the work of the
NYPD-FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and the prosecutors in the Southern
District for bringing today’s charges.
Finally, our security requires every single member of the public’s
help. It requires their vigilance. And it requires their care. If you see something that doesn’t look right,
contact law enforcement.”
As alleged in the Complaint:
Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS)
ISIS is a foreign terrorist organization based in the Middle
East and Africa whose publicly stated purpose is the establishment of an
Islamic state or caliphate based in the Middle East and Africa that encompasses
all Muslims worldwide. ISIS has pursued
the objective of an Islamic state through, among other things, killing and
deliberate targeting of civilians, mass executions, persecution of individuals
and communities on the basis of their religion, nationality, or ethnicity,
kidnapping of civilians, forced displacement of Shia communities and minority
groups, killing and maiming of children, rape, and other forms of sexual
violence. ISIS has recruited thousands
of foreign fighters from across the globe to assist with its efforts to expand its
so-called caliphate in Iraq, Syria, and other locations in Africa and the
Middle East, and has leveraged technology to spread its violent extremist
ideology and for incitement to commit terrorist acts.
The Dec. 11, Attack
On Dec. 11, at approximately 7:20 a.m., an improvised
explosive device (IED) detonated inside a subway terminal (the Subway Terminal)
in or around the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal located at West 42nd
Street and Eighth Avenue in New York, New York (the December 11 Attack). Shortly after the blast, members of the Port
Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department located an individual
later identified as Akayed Ullah lying on the ground in the vicinity of the
explosion. Surveillance footage captured Ullah walking through the Subway
Terminal immediately prior to the explosion, and then falling to the ground
after the explosion.
Ullah was subsequently taken into custody by law
enforcement. During the course of
Ullah’s arrest, law enforcement officers located on his person and in the
surrounding area what appeared to be the components of an exploded pipe bomb
(the Pipe Bomb). Specifically, law
enforcement located, among other items, (i) a nine-volt battery inside Ullah’s
pants pocket; (ii) wires connected to the battery and running underneath
Ullah’s jacket; (iii) two plastic zip
ties underneath Ullah’s jacket; (iv) several fragments of a metal pipe,
including pieces of a metal end cap, on the ground; (v) the remnants of what
appeared to be a Christmas tree lightbulb attached to wires; and (vi) pieces of
what appear to be plastic zip-ties, among other items.
After Ullah was taken into custody, he was transferred to
Bellevue Hospital, where he made statements to law enforcement officers after
waiving his Miranda rights. During that
interview, Ullah stated, among other things, the following:
- Ullah constructed the Pipe Bomb and carried out the Dec. 11 Attack. Ullah was inspired by ISIS to carry out the Dec. 11 Attack, and stated, among other things, “I did it for the Islamic State.”
- Ullah constructed the Pipe Bomb at his residence in Brooklyn (the Residence);
- The Pipe Bomb was comprised of a metal pipe, which Ullah filled with explosive material that he created. Ullah used Christmas tree lights, wires, and a nine-volt battery as a trigger to detonate the Pipe Bomb. Ullah filled the Pipe Bomb with metal screws, which he believed would cause maximum damage. Ullah used zip ties to secure the Pipe Bomb to his body.
- Ullah carried out the Dec. 11 Attack in part because of the United States Government’s policies in, among other places, the Middle East. One of Ullah’s goals in carrying out the Dec. 11 Attack was to terrorize as many people as possible. He chose to carry out the attack on a work day because he believed that there would be more people.
- Ullah’s radicalization began in at least approximately 2014. Ullah viewed pro-ISIS materials online, including a video instructing, in substance, that if supporters of ISIS were unable to travel overseas to join ISIS, they should carry out attacks in their homelands. He began researching how to build IEDs on the Internet approximately one year age.
- On the morning of Dec. 11, shortly before carrying out the attack, Ullah posted a statement on his Facebook account referring to the President of the U.S., stating, in substance, “Trump you failed to protect your nation.” Ullah also posted a statement that he believed would be understood by members and supporters of ISIS to convey that Ullah carried out the attack in the name of ISIS.
Items Recovered from Ullah’s Residence
On Dec. 11, law enforcement agents conducted a search of the
Residence pursuant to a judicially authorized search warrant. Law enforcement agents recovered, among other
items, (i) multiple pieces of metal pipes; (ii) pieces of wire and fragments of
what appear to be Christmas tree lights; (iii) multiple screws consistent with
the screws recovered at the scene of the December 11 Attack; and (iv) a
passport in Ullah’s name with multiple handwritten notations, including: “O AMERICA, DIE IN YOUR RAGE.”
Three individuals were injured as a result of the Dec. 11
Attack.
* * *
Ullah is charged in a Complaint with one count of provision
of material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization
which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment; one count of using
and attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction which carries a maximum
sentence of life imprisonment; one count of bombing and attempting to bomb a
place of public use which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment; one
count of destruction of property by means of fire or explosives, which carries
a mandatory minimum sentence of five years’ imprisonment and a potential
maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment; and use of a destructive device in
furtherance of a crime of violence, namely, the use and attempted use of a
weapon of mass destruction which carries a mandatory minimum consecutive
sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment and potential maximum of life, all in connection
with Ullah’s alleged detonation of an explosive device in New York City.
Mr. Sessions, Mr. Boente and Mr. Kim praised the outstanding
investigative efforts of the FBI; the NYPD; the Department of Homeland
Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and the Port Authority of New
York and New Jersey’s Police Department.
Ullah’s arrest is the result of the close cooperative efforts of the
U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the FBI’s Joint
Terrorism Task Force – which consists of law enforcement officers of the FBI,
NYPD, HSI and other agencies – and the U.S. Department of Justice’s National
Security Division.
The charges contained in the Complaint are merely
accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven
guilty.
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys
Shawn G. Crowley, Rebekah Donaleski and George D. Turner of the Southern
District of New York, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the
Justice Department’s National Security Division.
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