Jury convicts five Muslims in plot to kill soldiers at Fort Dix
Trial raised issues over FBI tactics
WASHINGTON - A federal jury convicted five Muslim men yesterday of plotting to kill soldiers at an Army base in New Jersey in a case that showed an aggressive FBI effort to infiltrate suspected homegrown terror cells.
The five men, all Muslim immigrants who have lived in the United States for some time, were acquitted on a related charge of attempted murder, but could face life in prison for their conviction on conspiracy to kill US soldiers; their sentencing is scheduled for April.
Critics of the government's antiterrorism approach said the case amounted to entrapment of angry young men, and that if not for the actions of the FBI's informants, the group would have done nothing more than talk about a possible attack.
However, security experts praised the convictions and the FBI investigation that led to them, arguing that the investigation stopped a group of amateur terrorists before they could execute a plot, gain experience and possibly spawn other cells.
The case sparked widespread concern because it involved immigrants who had no contact with foreign terrorist organizations, and instead found motivation from jihadist propaganda culled from the Internet.
During the 12-week trial in Camden, N.J., federal prosecutors argued that the men, some legal residents and some in the United States illegally, had planned to attack Fort Dix, N.J., where one of the defendants had made pizza deliveries.
Together they watched anti-American videos, talked about attacking soldiers and ultimately tried to buy assault weapons through an individual who turned out to be an informant.
Still, the trial made clear that the five were not professional terrorists. A video showed the accused men shooting assault weapons at a firing range but revealed that they had little knowledge of organizing an attack.
Local Muslim groups echoed the defense's criticism of the government's use of informants. The two main informants worked to stave off deportation and were paid thousands of dollars.
One informant told the men of someone in Baltimore who could sell them weapons, and the first arrests in the case took place at that informant's apartment.
During the trial, at which the accused men did not testify, defense lawyers argued that so-called terrorist training was nothing more than a vacation that featured horseback riding, video games, movies, and pillow fights. But prosecutors argued that the men were talking about a potential attack before the informant infiltrated their group.
The accused included three brothers from Cherry Hill, N.J.: Dritan Duka, 30, Shain Duka, 27, and Eljvir Duka, 25. The two older brothers, who agreed to buy the weapons, were also convicted of charges related to the possession of machine guns.
Another Cherry Hill man, Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, 23, was convicted of conspiracy and attempted possession of AK-47 assault weapons. The fifth man, Serdar Tatar, of Philadelphia, was convicted only of conspiracy.
In addition to the five men convicted yesterday, Agron Abdullahu, 26, pleaded guilty to abetting the illegal possession of weapons in October 2007, receiving a 20-month sentence. 