MEXICAN NATIONAL SENTENCED FOR HIS ROLE IN CONSPIRACY TO ACQUIRE "STINGER" MISSILE AND OTHER MILITARY GRADE WEAPONS

PHOENIX – On August 22, 2012, David Diaz-Sosa, 27, of Sinaloa, Mexico, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge James A. Teilborg to 25 years in federal prison, to be followed by five years supervised release. Diaz-Sosa entered a guilty plea on April 19, 2011, to all four counts of the superseding indictment, which are, conspiracy to acquire and export an anti-aircraft missile; conspiracy to possess unregistered firearms (machine guns) and transfer firearms for use in a drug trafficking crime; conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine; and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. In imposing the sentence, Judge Teilborg referred to the offenses as an "evil enterprise" that, "carried out to its ultimate conclusion," would put serious weapons in the hands of "bloodthirsty, ruthless, and savage gang members."

"With the confiscation of a significant quantity of methamphetamine and U.S. currency, this operation not only delivered a financial blow to a Mexican Drug Trafficking Organization, but it also prevented further cartel violence by keeping dangerous weapons out of their hands," said U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo. "I commend the ATF, the DEA, and the DCIS for their coordinated efforts in this case and pledge to continue to work with all of our law enforcement partners to bring to justice those involved in the illicit business of trafficking drugs and weapons."

"The ATF remains steadfast on the front line of violent crime and committed to work with our law enforcement partners to disrupt criminal networks involved in the illegal trafficking and distribution of weapons and narcotics," said ATF Special Agent in Charge Thomas Atteberry. "Mexico based criminal organizations and drug cartels continue to look towards the United States and in particular the Southwest Border States as a source of supply for firearms and in this case military grade weapons of war such as; grenades, machine guns, and Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS). ATF is committed to keeping America safe along with our law enforcement partners to ensure that these dangerous weapons are kept out of the hands of those that would turn them against the United States. I wish to commend the leadership of U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo and his office in their prosecution of these criminals," stated ATF Special Agent in Charge Thomas Atteberry.

"This sentencing was a result of a highly successful joint investigative effort by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), ATF, DEA, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona," said Janice M. Flores, Special Agent-in-Charge of the DCIS, Southwest Field Office. "The DCIS is committed to protecting America from this type of activity, and this commitment combined with the courage and determination of the law enforcement agents involved prevented military-grade weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons, from falling into the hands of a Mexican drug cartel. I believe this speaks volumes and serves as a warning for those intent on committing this type of criminal activity that law enforcement will pursue these crimes relentlessly."

According to court documents, in late 2009, Diaz-Sosa, a weapons and narcotics broker, began negotiating the purchase of high-powered, military-grade weapons for the Sinaloa Drug Cartel, the oldest and largest of the Mexican Drug Cartels. Shortly after the weapons negotiations began, Diaz-Sosa arranged for the delivery of 4.5 pounds of methamphetamine to serve as a down payment for the weapons. A co-conspirator, Emilia Palomino-Robles, made that initial delivery on behalf of Diaz-Sosa. For approximately the next three months, Diaz-Sosa and his associates negotiated with undercover federal agents for the purchase of the following weapons:

•A Dragon Fire anti-tank weapon;

•Two AT-4s (an 84-mm unguided, portable, single-shot recoilless smoothbore weapon);

•A Law Rocket (a Light Anti-Tank Weapon);

•A Stinger Missile (a portable infrared homing anti-aircraft surface-to-air missile);

•Two Def Tech grenade launchers and a dozen 40 mm grenades;

•One M-60 machine gun;

•One .30 caliber machine gun; and

•Three cases of hand grenades.

As negotiations continued, Diaz-Sosa and his associates agreed to exchange both cash and methamphetamine as a final payment for the weapons. On February 17, 2010, Diaz-Sosa arrived at a pre-determined time and location to finalize the weapons exchange. After a brief conversation, and an exchange of over 11 pounds of methamphetamine, Diaz-Sosa and another associate were taken into custody by federal agents. Later that same evening, Palomino-Robles was arrested in possession of $139,900, which was determined to be an additional portion of the weapons payment.

On March 5, 2012, Palomino-Robles was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, to be followed by five years supervised release, for her role in the methamphetamine and weapons conspiracy.

The investigation leading to the convictions in this case was conducted by the ATF, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service. The prosecution was handled by Josh Patrick Parecki, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix, and Robert J. Sander, Trial Attorney, Counterterrorism Section, National Security Division, Department of Justice.

Uzbek National Sentenced to Nearly 16 Years in Prison for Threatening to Kill the President and Providing Material Support to Terrorism

BIRMINGHAM, AL—U.S. District Judge Abdul K. Kallon today sentenced Ulugbek Kodirov, an Uzbek national who has lived in the United States since 2009, to 15 years and eight months in prison for providing material support to terrorism, threatening to kill President Barack Obama, and illegally possessing a weapon.

U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama Joyce White Vance, Department of Justice Assistant Attorney General for National Security Lisa Monaco; FBI Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Maley; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Glenn N. Anderson; Secret Service SAC Roy Sexton; and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) SAC Raymond R. Parmer, Jr. announced the sentence.

Kodirov, 22, of Uzbekistan, pleaded guilty in February to one count of providing material support to terrorism, one count of threatening to kill the president, and one count of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien. Kodirov is the first person to be convicted in the Northern District of Alabama for providing material support to terrorism.

U.S. Attorney Vance praised the quick response and careful investigative work by the Joint Terrorism Task Force for the Northern District of Alabama, which led to Kodirov’s arrest before anyone was harmed. “This case is a sobering reminder that terrorist activity can happen anywhere,” said U.S. Attorney Vance. “Our community has the coordinated efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement to thank for the immediacy of their response to this threat. This case has a happy ending—Kodirov is going to prison for more than 15 years, and no one in our community was hurt,” she said.

“This case demonstrates the continuing threat posed by violent extremists in this country and how law enforcement works together to neutralize such plots,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco. “Today, Mr. Kodirov is being held accountable for his actions thanks to the efforts of the many agents, analysts, and prosecutors involved in this matter.”

FBI SAC Maley thanked the members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), which includes the Jefferson and Shelby, Alabama County Sheriff’s Offices; Birmingham, Hoover, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham Police Departments; the Transportation Security Agency; Secret Service; ATF; and the Department of Homeland Security. He also thanked the Pelham and Leeds, Alabama Police Departments for their assistance in this case. “The JTTF has been diligently investigating and building partnerships to protect Alabama from terrorists since 9/11, and its efforts put it in the unique position to interdict a violent act of terrorism. This case serves as a reminder of the dangers of the Internet on radicalizing our youth right in our own back yards, and all citizens and organizations need to remain vigilant on the ever-increasing threat from home-grown extremists,” he said.

“Mr. Ulugbek Kodirov came to the United States as a student and a welcomed guest. To date, that has dramatically changed,” said ATF SAC Anderson. “Kodirov will be serving time at the Federal Bureau of Prisons for his threats against President Obama and illegal possession of a firearm. It is shocking that he was willing to arm himself with hand grenades to further his agenda. Thankfully, this recipe for disaster was averted. ATF and our law enforcement partners will continue to work cases like these and other violent crime to keep cities, small and large, across America safe every day,” Anderson said.

“In the fight against domestic terrorism, it is absolutely essential that federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies work closely together to share information and chase down leads,” said HSI SAC Parmer. “In this case, the JTTF worked exactly as it is intended to by identifying and eliminating a serious threat to the president of the United States.”

“The Secret Service values its role as a member of the Joint Terrorism Task Force and our partnerships with task force members representing local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies,” said Secret Service SAC Sexton. “A dangerous situation was thwarted and the person behind it was stopped because of the hard work of our dedicated task force investigators.”

Kodirov acknowledged in his guilty plea that he had been in communication with an individual whom he believed to be a member of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) and that Kodirov interpreted these conversations to mean that he should kill President Obama. Kodirov then took steps to obtain weapons to carry out his plans to kill the president. The IMU is designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. State Department. Kodirov also showed jihadist websites and videos on his computer to another individual and told that person that he wanted to assist others in jihad overseas, according to his plea agreement.

Kodirov also acknowledged that he had lengthy conversations in July 2011 with a different individual about Kodirov’s desire to kill President Obama and possible ways to carry out the assassination. That individual traveled to Birmingham to meet Kodirov and introduced him to another individual, an undercover agent, from whom Kodirov intended to obtain weapons he would use to kill the president.

The three men met on July 13, 2011, at a motel in Leeds. In that meeting, the agent presented a fully automatic Sendra Corporation Model M15-A1 machine gun, a sniper rifle with a telescopic sight, and four disassembled hand grenades and asked Kodirov if he would like to use any of them to “carry out his plan to kill the president,” according to the plea agreement. Kodirov chose the M15-A1 machine gun and the hand grenades and left the meeting with the weapons. Agents arrested Kodirov before he left the motel.

Kodirov entered the United States on a student visa in June 2009. His visa was revoked on April 1, 2010, for failing to enroll in school. Thereafter, he was unlawfully present within the United States. He was living in an extended-stay motel in Pelham at the time of his arrest.

The FBI, ATF, HSI, and Secret Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael W. Whisonant Sr. and Ryan K. Buchanan prosecuted the case with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

Massachusetts Man Agrees to Plead Guilty to Plotting Attack on Pentagon and U.S. Capitol and Attempting to Provide Material Support to Terrorists

BOSTON—In a written agreement filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston, Rezwan Ferdaus, aka Dave Winfield, aka Jon Ramos, has agreed to plead guilty to attempting to damage and destroy a federal building by means of an explosive and attempting to provide material support to terrorists.

He has also agreed to a joint sentencing recommendation of 17 years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release. In exchange, the government has agreed to dismiss the remaining charges against Ferdaus at the time of sentencing. The parties have filed a joint motion asking the court to schedule a change-of-plea hearing. The plea agreement filed today is subject to review and acceptance by the district court. A date for the change-of-plea hearing has not yet been set.

In September 2011, Ferdaus, 26, was arrested in connection with his plot to damage or destroy the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol using large remote controlled aircraft filled with C-4 plastic explosives. He was later charged in a six-count indictment with attempting to damage and destroy a federal building by means of an explosive; attempting to damage and destroy national defense premises; receipt of explosive materials; receipt of possession of non-registered firearms (six fully automatic AK-47 assault rifles and three grenades); attempting to provide material support to terrorists; and attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (al Qaeda).

The government has previously alleged that in 2010, and continuing until his arrest, he planned to commit acts of violence against the United States. With the goal of terrorizing the United States, decapitating its “military center,” and killing as many “kafirs” (an Arabic term meaning non-believers) as possible, Ferdaus extensively planned and took substantial steps to bomb the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol using remote controlled aircraft filled with explosives.

On September 28, 2011, Ferdaus requested and instructed the undercover FBI employees (UCE) to deliver explosives and firearms (material represented to Ferdaus to contain 25 pounds of C-4 explosives, including approximately 1.25 pounds of actual C-4 explosives, three grenades, and six fully automatic AK-47 assault rifles) for his attack plan. While inspecting the explosives and firearms in the UCEs’ vehicle and inside his storage unit, Ferdaus placed some of the explosives inside a remote controlled aircraft that he had ordered and obtained for his attack plan. Ferdaus then locked the explosives and firearms in his storage unit, at which time he was placed under arrest.

Ferdaus, a Northeastern University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in physics, began designing and constructing detonation components for improvised explosive devices (IEDs) using mobile phones that were delivered to individuals whom he believed to be al Qaeda operatives. Ferdaus allegedly supplied 12 mobile phones, each of which had been modified to act as an electrical switch for an IED, to FBI undercover employees, who he believed were members of or recruiters for al Qaeda, to be used to kill American soldiers stationed overseas. On September 28, 2011, Ferdaus delivered four more detonation devices to individuals who he believed were al Qaeda operatives.

The public was never in danger from the explosive devices, which were closely monitored by the UCs. The defendant was under surveillance as his alleged plot developed and the UCs were in frequent contact with him. More information about the case, including the indictment, affidavit, and other public documents, can be viewed at www.justice.gov/usao/ma/news.html.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Jack Pirozzolo and Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI-Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. Assistance was also provided by the Worcester, Ashland, and Framingham, Massachusetts Police Departments; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys B. Stephanie Siegmann and Donald L. Cabell of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Anti-Terrorism and National Security Unit.

Jury Convicts Naser Jason Abdo on All Counts in Connection with Killeen Bomb Plot

A jury this afternoon in Waco, convicted 22–year–old Naser Jason Abdo on federal charges in connection with a July bomb plot in Killeen, Texas. That announcement was made by United States Attorney Robert Pitman and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Armando Fernandez.

The jury convicted Abdo of one count of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction; one count of attempted murder of officers or employees of the United States, two counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a federal crime of violence; and, two counts of possession of a destructive device in furtherance of a federal crime of violence.

Testimony presented at trial revealed that on July 27, 2011, Abdo unlawfully attempted to create and detonate a bomb in an attempt to kill, with pre–meditation and malice aforethought, members of the uniformed services of the United States and to shoot survivors of said detonation with a firearm. Evidence further revealed that Abdo did knowingly possess a .40 caliber semiautomatic pistol while carrying out his plot.

“It’s important to note that this plot was interrupted and a potential tragedy prevented because an alert citizen notified law enforcement of suspicious activity, triggering prompt investigation and intervention. While we in law enforcement will be aggressive in investigating and prosecuting people like Mr. Abdo, we depend on the vigilance of the public in helping ensure the safety of the community,” stated United States Attorney Robert Pitman.

Officers with the Killeen Police Department arrested Abdo on July 27, 2011. At the time of his arrest, the defendant, an absent without leave (AWOL) soldier from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, was in possession of the handgun, plus instructions on how to build a bomb as well as bomb making components. Testimony during the trial revealed that Abdo intended to detonate the destructive device inside an unspecified restaurant frequented by soldiers from Fort Hood.

“This verdict confirms the collective efforts by all of our partners on the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) to address terrorism in any shape or form, whether it be by one or by many,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Armando Fernandez.

Abdo remains in federal custody. He faces up to life in federal prison for the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction charge; up to 20 years in federal prison for the attempted murder charge; a mandatory 30 years imprisonment for each possession of a destructive device in furtherance of a federal crime of violence charge; and, a mandatory five years in federal prison for each possession of a firearm in furtherance of a federal crime of violence charge. Sentencing is scheduled for 9:00am on July 20, 2012, before United States District Judge Walter S. Smith.

This case is being investigated by agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation together with U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Killeen Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety. Assistant United States Attorneys Mark Frazier and Gregg Sofer of the Western District of Texas and trial attorney Larry Schneider of the DOJ Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.