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Massachusetts man pleads guilty in plot to attack Pentagon, Capitol

1 of 3. A scale model of a U.S. Navy F-86 Sabre fighter plane is seen in a handout photo released by the U.S. Justice Department after the photo was submitted to U.S. District Court in Massachusetts as part of a criminal complaint and affidavit filed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Boston, September 28, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/U.S. Department of Justice/Handout

By Ros Krasny

BOSTON | Wed Jul 11, 2012 12:12am EDT

BOSTON (Reuters) - A Massachusetts man charged with plotting to attack the Pentagon and the U.S. Capitol with large, remote-controlled model airplanes packed with explosives has agreed to plead guilty, authorities said on Tuesday.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys have agreed to request a 17-year sentence for Rezwan Ferdaus on charges that he attempted to damage and destroy a federal building, and attempted to provide material support to terrorists.

Ferdaus, 26, of Ashland, Massachusetts, earlier pleaded not guilty to a total of six charges after his arrest in September 2011 after an undercover FBI investigation.

In exchange for the guilty plea, the government will dismiss the remaining charges.

A U.S. citizen and a physics graduate from Northeastern University, Ferdaus was arrested after an FBI investigation during which he requested and took delivery of explosives, three grenades and six assault rifles from undercover FBI agents.

At the time of his arrest, Ferdaus had obtained one remote-controlled aircraft, a scale model of a U.S. Navy F-86 Sabre fighter jet about the size of a picnic table, which he kept in a storage locker rented under a false name.

Authorities said the public was never in danger from the explosives and weapons, which they said were always under the control of federal officials during the sting operation.

The government had previously alleged that Ferdaus told undercover agents of his plans to commit acts of violence against the United States by decapitating its "military center" and killing "kafirs," an Arabic term meaning non-believers.

In 2010, already under surveillance, Ferdaus allegedly supplied 12 mobile phones rigged as electrical switches for improvised explosive devices to FBI agents whom he believed to be members of or recruiters for al Qaeda.

Ferdaus' attorneys suggested during a bail hearing in November that their client had mental health issues, and that his attack plan was "fantasy."

(Reporting By Ros Krasny; Editing by Doina Chiacu)
U.S.
Aerospace & Defense
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Comments (8)
daniwitz13 wrote:
Our Law enforcement must be sick to do this over and over again. They, (Law enforcement) aid and abet him, furnish and supply him and monetarily finance him throughout the WHOLE PROCESS. They arrest and charge him with EVERYTHING they themselves provided to him. It’s a farce to hand someone an item, then arrest that someone for having it. It is NOT a crime to go along with your own Law Agents and follow their instructions. It is NOT a crime because it is already KNOWN that NOTHING will happen. It is a crime when something CAN happen, not when it is choreograph for nothing to occur. It is NOT his intentions, but theirs (the Law) to direct the non-crime episode. He has NO WAY to acquire anything without the complicity of the Agents. There is a crime but NOT by him but by the Law Agents in their quest to punish someone, fill our prisons and job security. But why did he plead Guilty? Simple, the bogus charges carry a LIFE sentence. They now PLEA BARGAIN with him to plead guilty (even though innocent) and get ONLY 17 years. It becomes a no-brainer, LIFE or 17 years. They can NOW say that they got their man, he must be guilty, he pleaded guilty didn’t he. They justify what they did to sleep well every night. This is a sham that destroys a Man’s life, for what, for a contrived non happening. A big Pity to say this.

Jul 11, 2012 2:13am EDT  --  Report as abuse
TheHindu wrote:
Isn’t the same thing was done by OBL was doing, supplying arms, training, etc. and facilitating them with all that the terrorist needed. Well now I understand what happens to so many people graduate with degree in Criminology & Criminal Justice. To get a feather in their cap, they create terrorists, and then catch them. What would you expect from B-grade students. Being an FBI agent is like a movie to them…

Jul 11, 2012 4:31am EDT  --  Report as abuse
walfourth wrote:
I am becoming less and less impressed with these prosecutions. It looks like he was led by the hand the whole time before he was arrested. There are real groups and individuals planning real attacks, and Rezwan Ferdaus is not one of them. If the FBI has to go so far in order to help an alleged terrorist, one has to ask what would have happened if the FBI had not intervened? I have come to doubt that these borderline entrapment cases really make anyone safer. It looks more like public relations for the FBI and the U.S. Justice Department. A real attack would have a network and safe houses behind it. Plans would be discussed at mosques and Islamic centers, as well as in other friendly venues. Lone wolf prosecutions are a form of avoidance. These prosecutions are less likely to stir up Islamic groups, since the perpetrators have no apparent affiliations.

Jul 11, 2012 8:50am EDT  --  Report as abuse
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