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Multnomah Sheriff's Office
Mohamed Osman Mohamud in a booking shot taken upon his arrest Nov. 26, 2010. Mohamud was found guilty on terror charges Thursday.
A federal jury found an Oregon man guilty of federal terrorism charges on Thursday, rejecting the defense team's argument that Mohamed Mohamud was entrapped or induced by a yearlong FBI sting that began to target him when he was a teenager.
Mohamud was accused of leading a plot to detonate a bomb at Portland's 2010 Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. But the device he thought was a bomb was a fake, supplied by undercover FBI agents posing as members of al-Qaida.
Mohamud sat still, giving no visible reaction as Thursday's verdict was read. His attorney, Steve Sady, later said an appeal was being planned after the scheduled May 14 sentencing.
"We are disappointed with the verdict," Sady said. "We obviously though he was entrapped."
Mohamud faces up to life in prison at his sentencing.
Prosecutors had argued that Mohamud was predisposed to terrorism as early as 15 years old.
Mohamud, now 21, traded emails with an al-Qaida lieutenant later killed in a drone strike. He also told undercover agents he would pose as a college student while preparing for violent jihad.
"We are hopeful that this will bring closure and healing to all of us here in Portland," said Amanda Marshall, U.S. Attorney for Oregon. "This case has been a difficult case for the city of Portland. It's been a particularly difficult case for Mohamed Mohamud's community, for his family, for the Somali community."
Mohamud was never called to testify. Instead, the jurors saw thousands of exhibits and heard hours of testimony from friends, parents, undercover FBI agents and experts in counterterrorism, teenage brain development and the psychology of the Muslim world.
"Mr. Mohamud made a series of choices over a period of several years — choices that were leading him down a path that would have ended in violence," said Greg Fowler, who leads the FBI office in Portland. "His actions showed little regard for the rights and responsibilities that come with being an American or respect for the lives that he was prepared to take."
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ethan Knight told the jury earlier this week that the decision would be easy. Mohamud pressed a keypad button on a black Nokia cellphone and intended to kill people. Whatever else they might think about the methods of undercover agents or the government's decision to investigate a teenager, the underlying decision was Mohamud's and the motivation was hatred of the West.
"It's too early to tell about sentencing specifically," Knight said on Thursday. "We'll have to wait and see what further investigation, the presentencing report, will say about the defendant."
Sady had argued that Mohamud wasn't radicalized by online recruiters or friends with jihadist leanings, but rather by a Justice Department hungry for convictions that ignored every caution sign along the way. Undercover agents manipulated Mohamud's faith and plied him with praise and the promise of a life leading other jihadis, Sady said.
Mohamud could be ordered to serve life in prison.
Previous story: Trial in Oregon's alleged Christmas bomb plot to turn on 'entrapment'
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Leave a Comment:
If upheld through the appeals process this case will have major consequences on all future case where entrapment is the basis for the defense. Some will see this as a big 'win' while others will cite this as a gross violation of civil justice. Take your pick.
I'll count it as a win.
If you are cruising around looking for a prostitute, and the one you find happens to be an undercover cop, you weren't entrapped.
Likewise, if you cruise around looking for help committing terror plots, and the help you find happens to be undercover cops, you weren't entrapped.
If he wanted to kill people he would have gotten to it eventually, so this could be a preventative catch that I applaud. Not only it saved lives but it also saved him from having to live with deaths on his conscience. Not a bad deal for him either all things considered.
Now if it was entrapment and manipulation of course that is wrong and he shouldn't serve any inappropriate time.
"Mohamed Osman Mohamud" speaks volumes.
He placed the fake bomb and pressed the fake cell phone button. How is that entrapment? Had he teamed up with real terrorists the outcome might have been much different. We need to applaud the system that caught this jihad's before he could inflict real damage.
Yep, always the poor misguided youth, yada yada yada. About time they realize the people are tired of hearing about how the poor misguided punk never had a chance in life. Hope they put him in the general population at prison. He probably wouldn't last too long.
Give him the same punishment one of us would get in a Muslim country if we had plotted terrorism against them. Death!
TheMiddle1, I agree 100%. But there are people in this country that would say something on the line's like, -We're supposed to be the example of the world and show compation and Bla Bla Bla! We all know who they are.
I agree with those people that we should set an example. That example is that this type of action is not tolerated and will be dealt with severely.
If young Master Mohamud was the one that initiated the chain of events that led to his arrest, this is not entrapment.
The police just gave him enough rope to hang himself and he willingly leapt from the gibbet with the noose around his neck.
In this case the police were indeed protecting and serving. They collected their wages the old fashioned way -- they earned it. (thank you, John Housman)
Expect to see similar cases developing in the future; these knuckleheads are out there. Fortunately for the rest of us they seem to have a built-in proclivity for tipping their hands long before they are actually capable of carrying out their personal jihads. Which is evidence that they are really not very bright. But we already knew that, didn't we?
This is just one of many FBI entrapment cases - it seems like there is a new one every week. Instead of investigating reported crimes they are creating them.
Mrmedicine, I think that you've been taking the wrong one's -It's the small blue one NOT the large white one.
Entrapment? Give me a break! He thought that he was going to kill a bunch of "infidels", and he pushed the button. You think the FBI did it to get an ataboy? They knew exactly what they were dealing with.
No way this is entrapment. This scum was contacting terrorist organizations in an attempt to do something like this. All the FBI did was give him the (false) resources and enough rope to hang himself.
How about this, I wanted to kill someone and approached a UC to purchase an illegal gun. The UC sold it to me knowing it wouldn't work and when I tried to use it to kill the person arrested me for attempted murder. That is not entrapment, that is good police work, saved a life and caught a criminal.
sodomize his ignorant a$$!!!
just looking at that ignorant prick makes me i want to see him in jail. hope he has a good time that's exactly where he belongs. if he was on the street he would do something else for sure. Mohammad Mohammad that's a joke right there.
Appears the undercover agents did their job,before this individual could do any real damage.Well Done! Now if the court system does theirs and don't turn him loose in the yrs ahead. Give him life,no parole.