Thread: Dover air base considered by suspects detained in N.J.

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

Dover air base considered by suspects detained in N.J.
Men planned attack 'in the name of Allah'
By Jeff Montgomery and Lee Williams
The News Journal

CAMDEN, N.J. — Six foreign-born Muslims who cased Dover Air Force Base before allegedly plotting an attack at New Jersey's Fort Dix Army base were arrested Tuesday, accused of planning to massacre U.S. soldiers "in the name of Allah."

The men, who came from the former Yugoslavia and the Middle East, were arrested in Philadelphia and Cherry Hill, N.J., culminating a 15-month investigation that tracked them from a shooting range in Pennsylvania's Pocono Mountains to Dover, where one leader spent a summer day evaluating security measures at the sprawling base.

Delaware Safety and Homeland Security Secretary David B. Mitchell said the incident should remind residents to remain alert and report information to authorities when they encounter something that raises security concerns.

"We have passed this time, but what about next time?" said Mitchell, who noted that federal officials provided a limited alert to Delaware about a potential operation last year. "We're a small state in population, but we're a huge state in infrastructure and what we have to protect. We're very target-rich."

The plotters, some with ties to the former nation of Yugoslavia, considered attacks on Dover, Fort Monmouth and Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey, and area Coast Guard installations. Some even talked about bombarding the Army-Navy game crowd in Philadelphia before settling on an attempt to "kill as many soldiers as possible" at Fort Dix.

Fort Dix, an Army training base, was used to shelter ethnic Albanian refugees during a NATO bombing campaign in 1999.

Investigators said an alert store clerk tipped officials to the group after viewing a video recording that showed 10 young men "shooting assault weapons at a firing range in a militia-like style while calling for jihad and shouting in Arabic 'Allah Akbar' [God is Great]."

During the investigation, officials said, the plotters practiced with firearms on Pennsylvania state game lands in the Pocono Mountains. They also repeatedly discussed ways to procure weapons ranging from AK-47 assault rifles to heavier machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and mortars.

"The actions of these defendants posed a real threat to the safety and security of New Jersey citizens," said Christopher J. Christie, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey. "This case underscores the need for continued vigilance against threats within our borders."

Three brothers involved

Court papers identified the men as Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, 22, Dritan Duka, 28, Eljvir Duka, 23, Shain Duka, 26, Serdar Tatar, 23, and Agron Abdullahu, 24.

The Dukas are ethnic Albanians, and brothers, illegally living in the United States, according to FBI complaints unsealed with their arrests. They operate a roofing business and live in Cherry Hill, N.J., a Philadelphia suburb about 20 miles from Fort Dix. Abdullahu, who lives in Williamstown, N.J., and works at a supermarket, also is ethnic Albanian, but is living legally in the United States. All four are from the former Yugoslavia.

Shnewer, born in Jordan, is a U.S. citizen who lives in Cherry Hill and drives a cab in Philadelphia. Tatar, born in Turkey, is a legal U.S. resident living in Philadelphia, where he works at a 7-Eleven store.

While federal prosecutors called the men "Islamic militants," White House spokesman Tony Snow said the six "are not charged with being members of an international terrorism organization."

"At least at this point, there is no evidence that they received direction from international terror organizations," he said.

During initial appearances in federal court Tuesday, family members and friends wept and prayed for the men. The suspects wore leg shackles, but no handcuffs, during the afternoon appearance in U.S. District Court in Camden. Each waived offers of an interpreter.

In the packed courtroom, at least 17 people -- eight men and nine women -- sat in four benches designated for family of the accused. The family members declined to appoint a spokesman, despite requests from the media and the U.S. Marshals Service.

During the hearing, one woman fingered what appeared to be worry beads and two other women read from books written in Islamic script. With her head on an older woman's lap, one young girl cried.

At no point during the hearings were the defendants asked to answer to the charges. In the federal court system, a first appearance is used to advise them of their rights, ensure they understand the charges and maximum penalties, determine bail, ensure the defendants arrange for counsel and schedule court proceedings.

All six defendants were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals. They will appear in court Friday for a detention hearing to determine whether they will be released on bail.

Plotting an attack

The plot to attack a military base solidified in the summer of 2006, according to an affidavit filed with the charges. In a conversation recorded by a confidential informant, whom the men believed had experience in the Egyptian military, Shnewer said he and others had saved money to purchase weapons and were not afraid to die. "When you go to a military base, you need mortars and RPGs," he allegedly said.

On Aug. 13, 2006, Shnewer traveled to Dover Air Force Base with a government witness, where Shnewer assessed security and vulnerabilities at the more than 3,900-acre installation. During the trip, Shnewer played a video on his computer that taught the viewer how to make a grenade, according to the complaint.

Shnewer "surveilled the perimeter fence and other security features" at Dover. Shnewer said that Eljvir Duka told him "that they have high security over there. You can see the planes taking off. Sometimes, there are about 300 soldiers," the complaint states.

"Shnewer ... agreed with Eljvir Duka's assessment that the base was too difficult of a target because of its high security," the complaint noted.

Eight days later, Dover remained a topic of discussion, according to the affidavit by FBI Special Agent John J. Ryan. On Aug. 21, Shnewer and a federal informant, who secretly recorded the meeting, discussed Dover and "acquiring RPGs and machine guns."

The men decided on Fort Dix as a target, court documents state, but Dover Mayor Stephen R. Speed said the incident is a reminder that Delaware leaders need to be vigilant.

"I think everybody should be aware that there are people out there who are our enemies, and they want to do us harm," Speed said Tuesday, shortly before the start of a change-of-command ceremony at the base. "They're going to try to attack us in prominent physical locations, and of course military bases meet that description."

Mitchell said there is no reason to believe that Dover is facing an imminent threat and Delaware is not raising its threat level.

The Dover air base nevertheless ranks among the nation's busiest air cargo terminals and has played a prominent role in positioning and supplying troops in virtually all of the recent crises in Europe and the Middle East. It also operates the military's largest mortuary, receiving and preparing for burial the remains of virtually all American servicemen and women who die in battle or accidents abroad.

Dover Police Capt. Lester Boney said city representatives participate in weekly briefings coordinated by the FBI.

The Philadelphia Joint Terrorism Task Force, which assisted the FBI in the investigation, kept Delaware terrorism officials aware of the investigation, said state police spokesman Sgt. Joshua Bushweller. "At no time did they request any assistance from us. There was no need to heighten security around any of our bases in Delaware."

Master Sgt. Steve Marciniak, a Dover Air Force Base spokesman, said he was unable to comment on the allegations or on security responses at the base since the plot was uncovered.

"We're always vigilant, and it's our goal to ensure that the people who live and work here can do so in the safest environment that we can provide," Marciniak said. "We also don't discuss any specific threats along those lines. We'll leave it up to the FBI to conduct their investigation."

Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., said the arrests demonstrate that "terrorism and violent crime pose real threats to us here at home."

"It is equally clear that federal, state and local law enforcement are the first line of defense against these threats," Biden said.

Store clerk earns praise

At a press conference held on the courthouse steps in Camden, N.J., Christie said none of the defendants stood out as a ringleader of the group.

"They were like-minded individuals working in concert with one another," he said.

Christie credited law enforcement officers for thwarting the plotters, but he singled out the video store clerk, whom he refused to name, for reporting the suspicious tape that resulted in the arrests.

"This person did exactly what we want all citizens to do," he said.

Christie said the plotters targeted Fort Dix not for its lax security but for its familiarity, since one of the defendants delivered pizza to the base.

"Defendant Tatar said he knew the base like the back of his hand," Christie said. "They said they were prepared to die in the service of Allah."

Not every terrorist attack will be on the grand scale of 9/11, he said. "Shain Duka said: 'We can do a lot of damage with six people. We can do big things with six people.' "

Much of the case was constructed around recorded conversations between the six and two confidential informants cooperating with the FBI. With the informants' help, the FBI copied DVD files from Shnewer's laptop computer that contained what appeared to be the last will and testament of at least two of the 9/11 hijackers, images of Osama bin Laden and "images of Islamic extremists making various speeches in which speakers call the viewer to join the jihadist movement," court papers state.

"Today we dodged a bullet," said Joey Weis, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Philadelphia office. "If you look at the type of weapons they tried to purchase, we may have dodged a lot of them."

Weis said the cell may not be affiliated with al-Qaida, but was inspired by al-Qaida.

"They are their own cell, with no connection to but inspired by an international terrorist organization," Christie said. "They saw themselves as part of that group."

The six defendants constitute the "heart and soul" of this terrorist group, he said, but the investigation is ongoing and more arrests may follow.

Asked how successful the plotters could have been, Christie pointed out that one of the defendants had experience as a sniper in Kosovo, and he pointed to the 32 killings committed at Virginia Tech by a lone gunman armed with two semi-automatic pistols.

"These people knew how to shoot a weapon. Quite frankly, I think it could have been a disaster," he said. "These people were ready for martyrdom."

News Journal reporter Terri Sanginiti contributed to this story. Contact Jeff Montgomery at 678-4277 or jmontgomery@delawareonline.com. Contact investigative reporter Lee Williams at 324-2362 or lwilliams@delawareonline.com.


SUSPECTS IN THE FORT DIX ATTACK PLOT

Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer

AGE: 22; born April 28, 1985, in Jordan

HOME: Cherry Hill, N.J.

OCCUPATION: Drives a cab in Philadelphia

IMMIGRATION STATUS: U.S. citizen

CHARGE: One count of conspiring with others to kill uniformed U.S. military personnel. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Dritan Duka

AGE: 28; born Nov. 2, 1978, in the former Yugoslavia. Ethnic Albanian.

HOME: Cherry Hill, N.J.

IMMIGRATION STATUS: In United States illegally

OCCUPATION: Operates Colonial Roofing and National Roofing, which list business address at the home of his brothers, Eljvir and Shain Duka

CHARGEs: One count conspiring with others to kill uniformed U.S. military personnel and possessing a firearm as an illegal alien. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine on the first charge. The second charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Shain Duka

AGE: 26; bornJan. 21, 1981, in the former Yugoslavia. Ethnic Albanian.

LIVES: Cherry Hill, N.J.

IMMIGRATION STATUS: In United States illegally

OCCUPATION: Operates roofing businesses with his brothers

CHARGES: One count conspiring with others to kill uniformed U.S. military personnel and possessing a firearm as an illegal immigrant. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine on the first charge. The second charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Eljvir Duka

ALIASES: Elvis Duka; Sulayman

AGE: 23; born Aug. 28, 1983, in the former Yugoslavia. Ethnic Albanian.

LIVES: Cherry Hill, N.J.

IMMIGRATION STATUS: In United States illegally

OCCUPATION: Operates roofing businesses with his brothers

CHARGES: One count conspiring with others to kill uniformed U.S. military personnel and possessing a firearm as an illegal immigrant. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine on the first charge. The second charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Serdar Tatar

AGE: 23; born July 19, 1983, in Turkey

HOME: Philadelphia

IMMIGRATION STATUS: Legal U.S. resident

OCCUPATION: Works at a 7-Eleven store in Philadelphia; had delivered pizza for a restaurant next to Fort Dix

CHARGE: One count of conspiring with others to kill uniformed U.S. military personnel. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Agron Abdullahu

AGE: 24; born Sept. 23, 1982, in the former Yugoslavia. Ethnic Albanian.

LIVES: Buena Vista Township, N.J.

IMMIGRATION STATUS: Legal U.S. resident

OCCUPATION: Works at a ShopRite supermarket

CHARGES: Aiding and abetting illegal immigrants – the Dukas – with possessing weapons. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Sources: FBI, U.S. Attorney’s Office for New Jersey

http://www.dailytimesonline.com/apps/pb ... 1/70509001

Not every terrorist attack will be on the grand scale of 9/11, he said. "Shain Duka said: 'We can do a lot of damage with six people. We can do big things with six people.

This is the scariest detail about another terrorist attack. Have we learned nothing in Iraq? The suicide car bombers seem to have great success using guerilla warfare tactics.
All it will take is one terrorist sneaking across the border with a dirty bomb.