Mohamed Mohamud guilty of trying to bomb tree ceremony
Story Updated: Jan 31, 2013
PORTLAND, Ore. – After deliberating for less than a full day, a jury found Mohamed Mohamud guilty of trying to bomb Portland’s 2010 Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
The verdict was read in court around 3 p.m. on Thursday, not quite 24 hours after the defense and prosecution rested their cases on Wednesday afternoon.
The crime of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction carries a sentence of life in prison. Sentencing was set for May 14.
At issue during the trial, which lasted several weeks, was whether Mohamud, a 19-year-old Oregon State University student, was a fledgling terrorist who devised the plan, as the prosecution contended, or whether he was entrapped by overzealous FBI agents.
The defense argued Mohamud was young and vulnerable and only went along with the bomb plot under the persuasion of the undercover agents who posed as al-Qaida recruiters.
Defense attorneys conceded that Mohamud did write for violent jihad publications, but said he was not terrorism threat; he only began plotting violence after FBI agents came in contact with him, they argued.
The prosecution, however, said there was no way the teen was entrapped.
Read more: Recap of the closing arguments in the case
Story Updated: Jan 31, 2013
PORTLAND, Ore. – After deliberating for less than a full day, a jury found Mohamed Mohamud guilty of trying to bomb Portland’s 2010 Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
The verdict was read in court around 3 p.m. on Thursday, not quite 24 hours after the defense and prosecution rested their cases on Wednesday afternoon.
The crime of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction carries a sentence of life in prison. Sentencing was set for May 14.
At issue during the trial, which lasted several weeks, was whether Mohamud, a 19-year-old Oregon State University student, was a fledgling terrorist who devised the plan, as the prosecution contended, or whether he was entrapped by overzealous FBI agents.
The defense argued Mohamud was young and vulnerable and only went along with the bomb plot under the persuasion of the undercover agents who posed as al-Qaida recruiters.
Defense attorneys conceded that Mohamud did write for violent jihad publications, but said he was not terrorism threat; he only began plotting violence after FBI agents came in contact with him, they argued.
The prosecution, however, said there was no way the teen was entrapped.
Read more: Recap of the closing arguments in the case
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on Jan. 31, 2013 at 6:38 PM
for link go to katu.com
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on Jan. 31, 2013 at 6:47 PM
Should we be concerned at all that it's a possibility for our FBI to convince people who were not already interested in doing so- in commiting a terrorist act?
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Is Yoga a religion?
- Sassy01
on Jan. 31, 2013 at 6:21 PM