Threat Preceded MaySeattle Police Officer’s Slaying

UPI is reporting that Seattle police found a threatening note nine days before an officer was shot dead in his patrol car last weekend. NTARC will continue to follow this story.

The sources told The Seattle Times the note, which threatened the lives of Seattle officers, was discovered Oct. 22 at a city maintenance yard where four police vehicles had been set on fire, apparently by pipe bombs.

Officer Timothy Brenton was shot and killed Saturday by an assailant who pulled alongside his patrol car and opened fire.

It was not known if the shooting, which slightly wounded Brenton’s rookie partner, was related to the note, the newspaper said Wednesday. Police officials told the Times this week they had received multiple tips from the public claiming a connection.

Police were looking for a “vehicle of interest” that was photographed by the dashboard camera on Brenton’s car. An officer-safety bulletin issued to the force Tuesday said there was no probable cause to arrest the occupants, but warned officers to use extreme caution if the found the vehicle.

via Threat preceded Seattle officer’s slaying – UPI.com.

Additional Details Available At KIRO TV

Drive-by Shooting Apparently Targeted Seattle Police

A disturbing and saddening first for the city of Seattle. Seattle police say the fatal drive-by shooting of veteran Officer Timothy Brenton on Saturday night represented something the department had not seen before: the apparent targeting of police at random.

“It was incredibly brazen and bold,” said Assistant Police Chief Jim Pugel, who called the shooting an “assassination.”

Brenton, 39, a field training officer, and officer-trainee Britt Sweeney were seated in their parked squad car when Sweeney sensed danger over her left shoulder and yelled for her partner to duck.

A car pulled up alongside the officers’ car in the 100 block of 29th Avenue shortly after 10 p.m., and someone inside opened fire.

Bullets grazed Sweeney’s back as she hunkered down. Brenton was struck by several gunshots and died instantly.

Sweeney, 33, grabbed the police radio and called for help, jumped from the car and fired several rounds at the gunman’s sedan as it backed away from the cruiser, turned around and sped down the Leschi street, police said Sunday.

Speaking at a news conference Sunday afternoon, Mayor Greg Nickels called the shooting “a coldblooded killing.”

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Soldier Arrested After C4 Military Explosives Found At Home

An Army Special Forces soldier was arrested in Tennessee on Monday following the discovery of 100 pounds of C4 explosives outside his home. Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent Eric Kehn said he expects the man will face more charges related to the discovery of the explosives according to news reports on News Channel 5. Authorities say the explosives have no known link to terrorism. Video Link

The explosives were found in crates. The material was sealed in watertight containers and partially buried.

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From The Leaf Chronicle

Timothy Ryan Richards of the 5th Special Forces Group, has been charged with knowingly receiving and possessing firearms not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Federal and military officials searched Richards’ home early Monday morning after a pair of hunters found the C-4 plastic explosives in a field by the house, at 1880 Johnson Road, on Sunday at about 4:30 p.m.

Maj. April Olsen, 5th Group spokeswoman, said Richards was taken to the county jail and was transferred to federal custody. He was cooperating with authorities in the investigation, Olsen said.

Eric Kehn, special agent and public information officer with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said the investigation is ongoing.

“Our explosive recovery effort investigation continues,” Kehn said. “He is appearing in court on some different charges, and that outlines what he’s currently being charged with.”

Those charges included Richards’ having a Saber, 5.56mm-caliber rifle with a barrel less than 16 inches long and a Swedish K .45-caliber machine gun, according to the criminal complaint filed by ATF Special Agent Jamie Smith.

The complaint was filed in U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, in Nashville.

Olsen said the search was conducted by agents from the ATF, the FBI and U.S. Army Criminal Investigations

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Small Scale Terrorism Plots Pose New Threat

For some time now intelligence experts have warned of a disturbing trend towards homegrown terrorism. Coupled with an additional trend towards smaller scale plots and terror cells comprised of only 1 or more people, authorities are concerned.

After disrupting two recent terrorism plots, American intelligence officials are increasingly concerned that extremist groups in Pakistan linked to Al Qaeda are planning smaller operations in the United States that are harder to detect but more likely to succeed than the spectacular attacks they once emphasized, senior counterterrorism officials say.

The two cases — one involving two Chicago men accused this week of planning an attack on a Danish newspaper that published cartoons of the prophet Mohammad, the other a 24-year-old Denver shuttle bus driver indicted in a plot to use improvised explosives — are among the most serious in years, the officials said.

In both, the officials said, the main defendants are long-term residents of the United States with substantial community ties who traveled to Pakistan’s tribal areas, where they apparently trained with extremist groups affiliated with Al Qaeda. The officials, from American military, law enforcement and intelligence agencies, spoke on the condition that they not be identified because they were not authorized to discuss the cases.

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6 Passengers Faint on British Airways Flight

Ambulance staff were called to treat six passengers at Heathrow airport after they fainted while on a British Airways flight from the US and authorities say they found nothing suspicious.

None of those assessed needed hospital treatment and all were able to continue their journeys, the airline said.London Ambulance Service was asked to meet the flight from Newark at Terminal Five at 0650 GMT on Saturday.

Emergency services teams initially wore protective suits as it was unclear what had caused the passengers to faint.A British Airways spokeswoman said: “A handful of passengers on the aircraft fainted during the flight.”As a precaution, medical services met the aircraft.”

An investigation is under way into what caused the passengers to faint.

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AJC Condemns Attack on Los Angeles Synagogue

AJC strongly condemned the gun attack on a Los Angeles synagogue early this morning, in which two Jewish worshippers were wounded. “One day after President Obama signed into law a new hate crimes law, the Jewish community in Los Angeles experiences a horrific attack which law enforcement authorities are investigating as a hate crime,” said AJC Executive Director David Harris.

A gunman shot at worshippers entering the Adat Yeshurun Valley Sephardic synagogue in North Hollywood. “We are relieved to learn that both victims are in stable condition and pray for their full recovery,” said Harris. “We salute law enforcement for their quick response, their decision to consider this assault a hate crime, and their efforts to investigate and apprehend those responsible.”

Alleged Assault of News Photographer Outside Detroit Mosque

The Detroit News is reporting that police are investigating the assault of a Detroit News photographer outside a mosque whose leader was killed during a shootout with FBI agents Wednesday.

A group of men attacked photographer Ricardo Thomas about 6:30 p.m. outside the mosque on Clairmont at Holmur acccording to the report.

The attack lasted about 30 seconds and damaged camera equipment worth $8,000 to $10,000. The men returned to the mosque, but had left by the time police arrived.

"They told him to stop taking pictures, he said 'I'm just doing my job,' and then they set upon him," said reporter Charlie LeDuff, who witnessed the assault.

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Detroit Imam Killed During FBI Raid

According to several new reports, the leader of a Detroit mosque, Luqman Ameen Abdullah, 53 years old, who had previously been known as Christopher Thomas,was fatally shot Wednesday during a Federal Bureau of Investigation raid on what authorities called a criminal gang run by U.S. converts to Islam.

An FBI spokeswoman said six men were arrested in the raid on a suburban warehouse and two Detroit homes. The men were arrested on suspicion of a variety of offenses, including illegal possession of firearms, trafficking in stolen goods and altering vehicle identification numbers.

Three suspects remain at large.Luqman Ameen Abdullah, 53 years old, who had previously been known as Christopher Thomas, refused to surrender. He shot a police dog before he was fatally shot by authorities, the U.S. attorney’s office in Detroit said in a statement.

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This news release was issued today by Gina Balaya of the United States Attorney’s Office and Sandra Berchtold of the FBI:

11 Members/Associates of Ummah Charged with Federal Violations One Subject Fatally Shot During Arrest

United States Attorney Terrence Berg, Eastern District of Michigan, Andrew G. Arena, Special Agent in Charge (SAC), Federal Bureau of Investigation, (FBI), Detroit, Michigan, and Police Chief Warren Evans, Detroit Police Department (DPD), Detroit, Michigan announced a federal complaint was unsealed today charging Luqman Ameen Abdullah, a.k.a.Christopher Thomas, and 10 others with conspiracy to commit several federal crimes, including theft from interstate shipments, mail fraud to obtain the proceeds of arson, illegal possession and sale of firearms, and tampering with motor vehicle identification numbers.

The eleven defendants are members of a group that is alleged to have engaged in violent activity over a period of many years, and known to be armed.

In light of the information that the charged individuals were believed to be armed and dangerous, special safeguards were employed by law enforcement to secure the arrests without confrontation.

During the arrests today, the suspects were ordered to surrender. At one location, four suspects surrendered and were arrested without incident. Luqman Ameen Abdullah did not surrender and fired his weapon. An exchange of gunfire followed and Abdullah was killed. An FBI canine was also killed during the exchange.

Abdullah was the leader of part of a group which calls themselves Ummah (“the brotherhood”), a group of mostly African-American converts to Islam, which seeks to establish a separate Sharia-law governed state within the United States.

The Ummah is ruled by Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, formerly known as H. Rapp Brown, who is serving a state sentence in USP Florence, CO, ADMAX, for the murder of two police officers in Georgia. As detailed in the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint that was unsealed today, Abdullah has espoused the use of violence against law enforcement, and has trained members of his group in use of firearms and martial arts in anticipation of some type of action against the government.

Abdullah and other members of this group were known to carry firearms and other weapons.

Additionally, two federal search warrants were executed at 4467 Tireman Avenue, Detroit Michigan, and 9278 Genessee Street, Detroit, Michigan. The affidavits for these search warrants are sealed.

This case was jointly worked by the FBI, DPD, JTTF, and the United States Attorney’s Office – Eastern District of Michigan. We would like to express our appreciation to the Detroit Public Schools, Dearborn Police Department, Madison Heights Police and Fire Departments, and the members of JTTF for their assistance in this matter.

At the time of this release, Mujahid Carswell, Mohammad Alsahi and Yassir Ali Khan were still at large. Anyone with information regarding the location of these individuals should contact the FBI at (313) 965-2323

A complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A trial cannot be held on felony charges in a complaint. When the investigation is completed a determination will be made whether to seek a felony indictment.

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Tags: abdullah, christopher thomas, detroit mosque, fbi, fbi raid, homeland security, imam, terror, terrorism

Beltway Sniper John Allen Muhammad Scheduled for Execution

October 27, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News  
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Convicted Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection November 10, a Virginia corrections official said Tuesday. Muhammad was offered a choice in method of execution, and he declined. Under the code, if the inmate declines to choose, it defaults to lethal injection. His attorneys are asking Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine to spare his life.

Attorneys for convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad said their client is mentally ill and they have asked Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine to spare his life.

Thirteen people were shot, 10 fatally, when Muhammad and accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, went on a random shooting rampage around the Washington region in 2002.

Muhammad’s lawyers said in a statement they asked Kaine on Thursday to commute Muhammad’s sentence to life in prison. They said Muhammad’s illness is “illustrated by brain damage, brain dysfunction, neurological deficits as well as his psychotic and delusional behavior.”

The defense team said Muhammad’s mental illness was exacerbated by his military service in the first Iraq war. They presented Kaine with audio interviews of attorneys, mental health experts and a witness.

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Tags: beltway sniper, Beltway sniper attacks, execution, john allen muhammad, Lee Boyd Malvo, sniper

TSA Viper Training Exercise Held at CBBT

October 27, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News  
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On Tuesday morning, dozens of law enforcement agents greeted drivers at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. The traffic stop included a driver’s license check as well as explosive and drug sniffing dogs.

It is part of the Transportation Security Administration’s Viper Program and the agents aren’t your TSA airport screeners, according to Federal Security Director Jeffrey Horowitz.

“We do rail, we do busing, we do pipelines. We’re out there for all commercial modes of transportation,” he said.

Horowitz says the government saw a need to better protect its mass transit systems after the 2004 Madrid terrorist attack. Nearly two hundred people died in the coordinated bombing of several of Madrid’s commuter trains.

Since Viper’s inception in 2007, 3,500 operations have been conducted, half of those this year. Agents have nabbed drugs and illegal weapons. The larger goal is to deter terrorist activity.

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Tags: chesapeake bay bridge tunnel, homeland security, terror, terrorism, tsa, viper

Queens Man Is One of Two Accused of Trying to Supply Hezbollah

October 27, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News  
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A Queens man hailed as a hero for rescuing a woman from a crazed cabbie in 2007 is one of two men who have been indicted on charges that they tried to provide the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon with weapons, ammunition and vehicles.

The men, Patrick Nayyar of Flushing and Conrad Stanisclaus Mulholland, agreed to sell guns, ammunition, vehicles, bullet-resistant vests and night vision goggles to a man who represented himself as a member of Hezbollah but was an F.B.I. informant, officials said.

Mr. Nayyar was in custody on Tuesday. Mr. Mulholland remained at large, according to prosecutors who believe he is currently in Britain, an official said.

Because Mr. Nayyar was hailed as a hero in The Daily News for having rescued a woman in a dispute with a cabdriver in 2007, his lawyer, Martin L. Schmukler said, “This doesn’t sound like real terrorism to me. This sounds like an investigation gone wild.”

In a series of meetings between July and September, Mr. Nayyar, 45, and Mr. Mulholland, 43, “provided the confidential informant with a handgun, a box of ammunition and a pickup truck, believing that the confidential informant would deliver the items” to the militant group in Lebanon, according to a statement from Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York.

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Tags: Federal Bureau of Investigation, hezbollah, homeland security, Indictment, terror, terrorism, terrorist, terrror target

2 Chicago Men Charged in Terror Plot Over Muhammad Cartoons

October 27, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News  
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Two Chicago men have been charged in a terrorist conspiracy targeting the facilities and employees of a Danish newspaper that printed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

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Details From The Chicago Breaking News Center

Terrorism-related charges were filed against two Chicago men today, accusing them of plotting against targets in Western Europe, including “facilities and employees” of a Danish newspaper that printed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad that sparked riots in the Muslim world.

Charged are David Coleman Headley, 49, and Tahawwur Hussain Rana, 48.

Headley was described as an American citizen who changed his name from Daood Gilani. He was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit terrorist acts involving murder and maiming outside the U.S. and one count of conspiracy to provide material support to the conspiracy, according to a release from the U.S. attorney’s office.

Rana, a native of Canada, was charged with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign conspiracy involving Headley and three other individuals.

Both men remain in federal custody, officials said.

Since at least late 2008 until he was arrested on Oct. 3, 2009, Headley identified and conducted surveillance of potential targets for a terrorist attack during two trips to Denmark in January and July 2009, according to federal complaints against the two men.

Rana allegedly helped arrange Headley’s travels overseas and conceal their purpose, and discussed potential targets for attack with Headley.

Headley allegedly reported and attempted to report n his overseas surveillance to other conspirators, according to the affidavits, including:

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Tags: chicago, chicago terror, danish newspaper, denmark, homeland security, muhammad cartoons, terror, terror attack, terror plot, terrorism, terrorist

2nd Chicago Man Tied To Terror Plot

October 27, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News  
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The Chicago Tribune reports that the FBI has arrested a second Chicago man allegedly involved in an international terrorist plot with Western European targets.

The man was taken into custody Oct. 3 before he boarded a flight at O’Hare International Airport to Philadelphia, the first stop on a trip to Pakistan, where he planned to meet people with known ties to terrorist organizations that have carried out fatal attacks that resulted in the deaths of U.S. citizens, a source said. He has not been charged.

After that arrest, dozens of FBI agents from the Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Oct. 18 raided a Grundy County meat-processing plant that specializes in Islamic foods.

The owner of the plant, Tahawar Hussain Rana, also of Chicago, was arrested at his North Side home the same day as the raid on First World Management Services in Kinsman, northwest of Dwight. Agents seized records from the plant, as well as a related North Side business also raided the same day, said the source, who is familiar with the investigation.

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Tags: accomplices, chicago, fbi, Federal Bureau of Investigation, homeland security, joint terrorism task force, meat plant, O'Hare International Airport, ohare, slaughterhouse, terror accomplices, terror attack, terror plot, terrorism

High Senior Arrested; School Bomb Threat Alleged

October 26, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News  
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Sign On Diego reports that a senior at Ramona High School who told friends and others that he was going to blow up the school with homemade bombs made of C-4 explosive and hand grenades was arrested early Sunday.

Korey Flad, 19, faces charges that include threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction, threatening a school and making criminal threats, the department said.

Ramona sheriff’s Detective Mike McNeill said no explosives or grenades were found at Flad’s home.

It was all talk, McNeill said. As far as investigators can tell, he did not have any access to C-4 or grenades. “He was remorseful, cooperative, forthcoming, honest and compliant,” McNeill said.

Flad does not have any history of trouble with authorities, McNeill said, adding that he comes from “a regular middle-class home. There were no family problems.”

via Ramona High senior arrested; school threat alleged – SignOnSanDiego.com.

Tags: bomb, bomb school, bomb threat, Explosive material, high school, homeland security, Sheriff, Weapon of mass destruction

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