Man charged in plot to attack U.S. shopping mall

[Ian David]

Source: Reuters

BOSTON (Reuters) - U.S. federal prosecutors have charged a Massachusetts man with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, alleging he and co-conspirators traveled to the Middle East seeking training, discussed attacking a shopping center, and watched and distributed "jihadi" videos.

Tarek Mehanna, 27, from Sudbury, Massachusetts, had been previously indicted in January 2009 for making false statements to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other officials in connection with a terrorism investigation, the U.S. Justice Department said in a news release on Wednesday.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE59K35320091021

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The Boston "Terror Suspect" didn't even have weapons yet. He was thwarted by our gun laws.

See also:

Mass. man charged in terror attacks plans

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
October 21, 2009

BOSTON - A 27-year-old Massachusetts man has been charged with conspiring with others to support and plan terror attacks in and outside the United States, including plots to attack U.S. shopping malls and U.S. military in Iraq.

<snip>

Federal prosecutors say Mehanna and his conspirators planned the logistics of a mall attack — including the possibility of attacking emergency responders. However, authorities say the plot was not carried out because they could not get automatic weapons.

<snip>

Mehanna was arrested in November 2008 for allegedly lying to authorities about the whereabouts of a man who trained with al-Qaida members with the goal of overthrowing the Somali government.

More:
http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091021/NEWS11/910219983/-1/rss04






Hat-tip to: http://twitter.com/wbz/

[Ian David]

1. CNN says they tried to buy guns, but were prevented by gun regulations. n/t

[Rage for Order]

15. We need more restrictive gun laws ASAP!!!

Oh, wait a minute...

[Cirque du So-What]

2. Gun-grabbers!

How DARE the Commonwealth deny terrorists the guns they need for protection of their way of life!

[robo50]

6. How DARE they! Terrorism is a right of all of us!

:sarcasm:

He was a flunky! He couldn't get into terrorist training camps while traveling overseas!

Inspired by the DC sniper?

What a screw up.

[benEzra]

13. The restrictions on automatic weapons are primarily Federal. (n/t)

[Soylent Brice]

3. i've always wanted to do that.

drive a car through a mall, that is.

like in Dawn of the Dead (1978).

[paulsby]

4. but but but

all it takes is a simple modification to a semi-auto to make it into an automatic... or so the gun grabbers claim all the time. lol

fwiw, in 20 yrs of police work i have seized several hundred guns in the field.

i have NEVER seen a full auto conversion.

[47of74]

5. Terror charges filed in Boston

Source: CNN

BOSTON, Massachusetts (CNN) -- Investigators have charged a man with providing material support to terrorists and other crimes, the acting U.S. attorney for Massachusetts said Wednesday.

The suspect was arrested a year ago in connection with the terror probe, but the latest charges are more serious, said Michael K. Loucks, the acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts.

The man and others planned to attack at least one U.S. shopping mall, but that didn't happen because they couldn't obtain the assault weapons they wanted, Loucks said. He didn't name the mall.

Loucks said the men had planned to assault multiple entrances of the center, and had determined the steps the attackers would take when first responders arrived.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/10/21/terrorism.probe/index.html

[onehandle]

7. Gun Industry... I mean, NRA lawyers are on their way.

How dare they deny them their Second Amendment rights!

[benEzra]

10. The NRA supported the 1934 restrictions on automatic weapons, and still does.

So do most gun owners I know.

[onehandle]

14. Damn liberal group.

They just don't get the Absoluteness of the Second Amendment.

[benEzra]

16. That absoluteness is mostly a straw man.

The gun control debate is about the lawful purchase and ownership of non-automatic, non-sound-suppressed NFA Title 1 small arms under .51 caliber (plus shotguns) and licensed carry, not "any weapon for anybody at any time anywhere" as it is sometimes caricatured.

[slackmaster]

8. Like so many gun control extremists on DU, they failed to read up on existing US gun laws

:rofl:

[superconnected]

31. I'm glad for what gun control there is. It stopped these people. Obviously we need more gun control

because we need to stop crazy people and the great gun-nut-brains who let their guns fall into the hands of kids and others who use their guns to kill innocent people - daily. It won't stop gun deaths all the time, but it worked in this case so obviously gun control does work. I can't wait until I can vote for more of it.

I really when someone who has a fire arm registered to them and then that firearm gets used in a crime/murder, they should spend a mandatory year in jail and be able to be sued by the family of the person who was shot/killed. Of course that kind of responsibility is something most gun owners won't vote for.

I also want double sentences or extra years mandatory for people who commit crimes with unregistered guns. It should hurt more. As it stands, in my state - Washington - it's only an average of 6 years for murder.

[slackmaster]

32. Do you feel the same way...

...I really when someone who has a fire arm registered to them and then that firearm gets used in a crime/murder, they should spend a mandatory year in jail and be able to be sued by the family of the person who was shot/killed....

...about the registered owner of a car that gets stolen by someone who gets drunk and runs someone over with it?

I also want double sentences or extra years mandatory for people who commit crimes with unregistered guns. It should hurt more. As it stands, in my state - Washington - it's only an average of 6 years for murder.

That would be unfair to gun-theft victims in states that don't have gun registration, which includes yours and most others. ;-) I guess you aren't familiar with our existing gun laws either.

[Alcibiades]

9. What a wuss! Semi-automatic would be good enough

You can get an AK-74 for under $500. How many rounds per minute do you need?

[Erebus67]

17. Not to mention how hard it is to control and be accurate with full auto. n/m

[Ian David]

29. True. You aim for Baby Gap and end up wasting bullets on Orange Julius. n/t

[Xithras]

30. That's just....wrong

:rofl:

[benEzra]

11. The automatic weapons ban is Federal, not state...

the relevant law is the National Firearms Act of 1934.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Firearms_Act

[Tracer]

12. This guy lives a half a mile from my house.

There are news helicopters flying overhead as I type this.

How much of a danger this a**hole was, I have no idea.

[Oldtimeralso]

18. Feds: Mass. man planned terror attacks on US malls

Source: Associated Press

Oct 21, 5:09 PM (ET)

By DENISE LAVOIE

BOSTON (AP) - A pharmacy college graduate made a defiant appearance in federal court Wednesday, hours after being charged with conspiring with two other men in a terror plot to kill two prominent U.S. politicians and carry out a holy war by attacking shoppers in U.S. malls and American troops in Iraq.

Authorities say the men's plans - in which they used code words like "peanut butter and jelly" for fighting in Somalia and "culinary school" for terrorist camps - were thwarted in part when they could not find training and were unable to buy automatic weapons, authorities said.

Tarek Mehanna, 27, was arrested Wednesday morning at his parents' home in Sudbury, an upscale suburb 20 miles west of Boston, and appeared for a brief hearing later in the day. When ordered by the judge to stand to hear the charge against him, he refused. He finally did stand - tossing his chair loudly to the floor - only after his father urged him to do so.

"This really, really is a show," his father, Ahmed Mehanna, said afterward. When asked if he believed the charges against his son, he said, "No, definitely not."



Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_MASSACHUSETTS_TERROR_CHARGE?SITE=ILJOL&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2009-10-21-18-00-39

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Glad this was prevented, Hope it is not a government setup.

Edit for: More info at link

[Grassy Knoll]

19. I'm glad we are not second guessing this type of crap. n/t

[hmorehead]

20. Some terrorist, gave up the mall shooting because he couldn't get automatic weapons???

Hell, I don't even own any weapons and I think I could get them in a week or two pretty darn easily.

[cosmicone]

21. It is funny that Paksitani terror camps have admission policies

and these guys' applications were rejected hahahahaha.

[Fearless]

22. Believe me if they had tried to attack a mall in my area...

They would've had their asses handed to them by the roaming gangs. :eyes: I know. But still. :banghead:

[ej510]

23. U.S. to announce arrest in terror probe in Boston

Source: Reuters

Wed Oct 21, 2009 9:13am EDT

BOSTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Attorney's office in Boston said it will hold a news conference on Wednesday regarding an arrest and charges in a terrorism-related matter.A spokeswoman for the office was not immediately available to provide more details.The news conference will be held in Boston at 10 a.m. EDT.(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Eric Beech)

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE59K35320091021

[Turbineguy]

24. Obama obviously needs

to take more vacations.

[laconicsax]

25. Seriously, people might start thinking that he's keeping us safe.

[wroberts189]

26. They would have a stronger case if they sold them some fake weapons...

-----------------
article:

"Ultimately, the trio never came close to pulling off an attack. Authorities say they never got the terrorist training they sought - that the men told friends they were turned down because of their nationality, ethnicity or inexperience, or that the people they'd hoped would get them into such camps were either in jail or on a religious pilgrimage.

The men abandoned the mall attack plans after their weapons contact said he could find only handguns, not automatic weapons."


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A 27 year old with an almost very good degree and an almost certain good paying job throws his life away.

Some things just do not make any sense... he had a life coming that would be good.

[Ian David]

28. WTF... he had a JOB and HEALTH CARE.

You know what I think would be awesome?

Flying a plane.

I would LOVE for someone to buy me flight classes.

I would fly all the time and enjoy it, and would probably even enjoy a job as an airline pilot.

Especially if I was single.

But you know what I wouldn't do if I was handed that awesome opportunity?

I wouldn't deliberately fly my plane into a fucking building.

WTF? Dudes... you got to learn how to fly planes!

[wroberts189]

33. It does boggle the mind.....

I would love to fly planes myself.

I was almost an ATC (air traffic controller) ..aced the test.. had an interview... but I knew I could not handle that kind of stress. Peoples lives in your hands every day.

I could not risk it. But it would have been a good career.

This guy had everything going for him... I struggle month to month.

Yet he blew it all away over some type of misguided hate... against the very place he was prospering.

[Turborama]

27. Mass man accused of plot to kill U.S politicians

By DENISE LAVOIE, AP Legal Affairs Writer – 30 mins ago

BOSTON – A Massachusetts man and two friends tried and failed to get into terrorist training camps and then plotted to kill two prominent U.S. politicians and randomly shoot people at American shopping malls, authorities said Wednesday.

Tarek Mehanna, who recently taught at a Muslim school in Worcester, was arrested early Wednesday at his parents' suburban Boston home. Mehanna was charged with conspiring with two other men — an American now in Syria and another man who is cooperating with authorities — to provide support to terrorists.

Ultimately, the trio never came close to pulling off an attack. Authorities say they never got the terrorist training they sought — that the men told friends they were turned down because of their nationality, ethnicity or inexperience, or that the people they'd hoped would get them into such camps were either in jail or on a religious pilgrimage.

The men abandoned the mall attack plans after their weapons contact said he could find only handguns, not automatic weapons.

More: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091021/ap_on_re_us/us_massachusetts_terror_charge