Canadian terrorists discussed alternative plans to poison air/water to kill up to 100,000 people: Court docs

 

Via suspects discussed alternative plans to poison air/water to kill up to

100,000 people: Court docs

http://www.torontosun.com/2013/05/09/third-man-arrested-in-plot-to-derail-via-train Third man arrested in plot to derail train

 

 

By Jessica Murphy  ,Parliamentary Bureau

 

First posted: Thursday, May 09, 2013 03:12 PM EDT | Updated: Thursday, May

09, 2013

 

    Terror attack thwarted in Canada has al-Qaida links: RCMP

    Via Rail terror suspect recently obtained U.S. visa

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Two of the Via Rail terror suspects allegedly

contemplated poisoning the air or water before settling on the plot to

target a passenger train, according to newly released U.S. court documents.

 

The fresh details came to light Thursday as American authorities revealed an

FBI sting operation scooped up a third man in connection to the foiled plot

to derail a train between Toronto and New York.

 

Ahmed Abassi, a Tunisian citizen who previously lived in Canada, has been

charged with two counts of knowingly making false statements in an

application to immigration authorities for a green card and work visa, in

order to facilitate an act of international terrorism.

 

"As alleged, Mr. Abassi came to the United States to pursue terrorist

activity and support others in the same shameful pursuit. What Mr. Abassi

didn't know was that one of his associates, privy to the details of his

plan, was an undercover FBI agent," said FBI assistant director-in-charge

George Venizelos in a statement.

 

Authorities arrested Abassi at New York's JFK airport on April 22, the same

day Canadian law enforcement nabbed Chiheb Esseghaier, of Montreal, and Raed

Jaser, of Toronto.

 

In its release, the U.S. Department of Justice alleges Abassi was

responsible for radicalizing Esseghaier and met with him in New York City

after travelling to the U.S. in mid-March. It is unclear where Abassi lived

in Canada or how long he was there.

 

In recorded conversations with Esseghaier and the undercover FBI agent,

Abassi allegedly talked about his desire to commit terrorist acts in the

U.S. and other countries and his intention to provide support to terror

organizations including an al-Qaida affiliate based in Iraq called the

al-Nusrah Front.

 

It's also alleged he had plans to recruit others to his cause.

 

Court documents released by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of

New York describe how Abassi and Esseghaier worked to hatch the alleged plan

including that "the defendant noted that he had suggested an alternative

plot -- contaminating the air or water with bacteria in order to kill up to

100,000 people -- but that Esseghaier was dismissive of that plan."

 

The Department of Justice only unsealed Abassi's indictment Thursday.

 

Esseghaier and Jaser appeared in Canadian court April 23 and were charged

with a series of terrorism-related offenses, including conspiring to murder

people and to interfere with transportation facilities for a terrorist

group.

 

The RCMP and the U.S. ambassador to Canada David Jacobson both noted how the

latest information underscored the shared security responsibility between

Canada and the U.S.

 

Abassi's next court date is set for June 11 in New York City.

 

--with files from Daniel Proussalidis

 

==========================================

(F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this

message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to

these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed

within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with

"Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976.

The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The

Copyright Act of 1976. "Fair Use" legally eliminates the need to obtain

permission or pay royalties for the use of previously copyrighted materials

if the purposes of display include "criticism, comment, news reporting,

teaching, scholarship, and research." Section 107 establishes four criteria

for determining whether the use of a work in any particular case qualifies

as a "fair use". A work used does not necessarily have to satisfy all four

criteria to qualify as an instance of "fair use". Rather, "fair use" is

determined by the overall extent to which the cited work does or does not

substantially satisfy the criteria in their totality. If you wish to use

copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you

must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to:

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

 

THIS DOCUMENT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS

PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS.