- Post-9/11, Mehanna is one of hundreds of Muslim Americans
victimized, vilified, and persecuted for their faith, ethnicity, prominence,
activism, and at times charity.
-
- On October 21, 2009, an FBI press release said:
-
- "A Sudbury, Mass. man was charged today in federal
court with conspiracy to provide support to terrorists."
-
- Maliciously and spuriously, Mehanna was accused of "conspir(ing)
with Ahmad Abousamra and others to provide material support and resources
for use in carrying out a conspiracy to kill, kidnap, main or injure persons
or damage property in a foreign country and extraterritorial homicide of
a US national."
-
- Despite no evidence whatever proving it, "Mehanna
and co-conspirators (were accused of having) discussed their desire to
participate in violent jihad against American interests and that they would
talk about fighting jihad and their desire to die on the battlefield."
-
- "(They also) attempted to radicalize others and
inspire each other by, among other things, watching and distributing jihadi
videos."
-
- "(In addition), Mehanna and two of his associates
traveled to the Middle East in February 2004, seeking military-type training
at a terrorist training camp (to) prepare them for armed jihad....including
(against) US and allied forces in Iraq....(One) of Mehanna's coconspirators
made two similar trips to Pakistan in 2002."
-
- "....Mehanna and the co-conspirators had multiple
conversations about obtaining automatic weapons (from a Mr. Maldonado,
now serving a 10-year sentence for training with Al Queda in Somalia) and
randomly shooting people in a shopping mall, and that the conversations
went so far as to discuss the logistics of a mall attack, including coordination,
weapons needed and the possibility of attacking emergency responders."
-
- Yet no attack occurred. None, in fact, was planned or
contemplated. According to FBI scoundrels, however, it was because no automatic
weapons could be obtained even though legal semi-automatic ones are freely
sold and illegal automatic ones easily gotten.
-
- Eastcoastfirearms.com lists numerous ones for sale, including
AK-47 (Kalashnikov) assault rifles, AR-15/M16 type rifles, Uzi assault
weapons, LWRC M6A2s called the most modern carbine rifle in the world,
and various others with considerable firepower.
-
- Federal Judge Leo Sorokin ordered Mehanna held without
bail pending his October 30 court appearance. In response, his attorney,
JW Carney, Jr. said:
-
- "This is the type of case that challenges our commitment
and faith in the United States Constitution. Our country is respected around
the world because we presume people are innocent, and we require the government
to prove its allegations in open court at trial."
-
- According to FBI authorities, Mehanna and "co-conspirators"
used code words like "peanut and jelly" to mean Somalia fighting
and "culinary school" for terrorist camps. In fact, whatever
they likely said they meant precisely, and what proof suggests otherwise.
-
- Prosecutors also claimed when they weren't able to join
terror groups in Iraq, Yemen and Pakistan, the 2002 Washington-area sniper
shootings inspired them to attack shopping malls, as well as two (unnamed)
former executive branch members.
-
- Again, no evidence proved it. Baseless charges alone
were presented with plenty of theatrics to appear real.
-
- Mehanna is a graduate of the Massachusetts College of
Pharmacy where his father, Ahmed, is a professor. They reside in Sudbury,
MA, an affluent Boston suburb.
-
- Friends and allies rallied to his defense. Abdul Cader
Asmal, the Islamic Center of Boston's former president, said he gave lectures
and translated poetic Arabic scriptures to English. He's also dedicated
to his faith and nonviolent.
-
- Ahmad AlFarsi called him "one of the most gracious,
kind, caring, thoughtful, and respectable people I have ever known....I
have seen him go above above and beyond what most others would do to help
others in need."
-
- "Those who know him personally know exactly what
I am talking about. I am sure any of his peers, Muslim or non-Muslim, would
testify to his excellent character."
-
- Nonetheless, bogus evidence was used to convict. Moreover,
it was kept secret to prevent defense attorneys from discrediting it. It's
a common prosecutorial trick when no indictable facts exist.
-
- In other words, if truth can't convict, manipulated lies
substitute to look real.
-
- Jurors Pronounce Guilt by Accusation
-
- Mehanna was found guilty of being Muslim in America at
the wrong time. Detailed information about him can be found on FreeTareq.com.
-
- On December 20, the Boston Globe reported the news. Headlined,
"Tareq Mehanna guilty of terror charges," it said:
-
- A "swift" "sweeping" Boston District
Court verdict found him guilty "of providing material support to Al
Qaeda (as well as seeking) paramilitary training in Yemen so he could carry
out jihad, or holy war, against US soldiers in Iraq."
-
- He was also convicted of using Arabic "to translate
and distribute documents promoting Al Qaeda's ideology, to inspire others
to violent jihad."
-
- In all, he was convicted on seven counts of "conspiring
to provide material support to terrorists, conspiring to kill in a foreign
country, and of lying to authorities in a terrorism investigation."
-
- Sentencing is scheduled for April 12. Mehanna faces possible
life in prison despite having committed no crime, planning one, or even
contemplating the possibility.
-
- In response, his attorney JW Carney promised to appeal,
saying:
-
- "The charges scare people. The charges scared us
when we first saw them. But the more that we looked at the evidence, the
more that we got to know our client Tarek, the more we believed in his
innocence."
-
- According to the Massachusetts ACLU:
-
- "The ACLU of Massachusetts is gravely concerned
that today's verdict against Tarek Mehanna undermines the First Amendment
and threatens national security."
-
- "Under the government's theory of the case, ordinary
people - including writers and journalists, academic researchers, translators,
and even ordinary web surfers - could be prosecuted for researching or
translating controversial and unpopular ideas. If the verdict is not overturned
on appeal, the First Amendment will be seriously compromised."
-
- Overall, the ACLU condemned Mehanna's outrageous conviction
based largely on "First Amendment-protected expression."
-
- On July 29, 2011, the Massachusetts ACLU submitted an
Amicus Curiae memorandum, supporting Mehanna. However, District Court Judge
George O'Toole denied permission to file it.
-
- A Final Comment
-
- In today's America, prosecutors and hanging judges use
any means to convict. Innocence and judicial fairness don't matter, just
imprisoning another Muslim for political advantage with considerable major
media help.
-
- Victims are guilty by accusation. Convictions nearly
always follow. Jurors are intimidated to go along. Media scoundrels hype
fear instead of challenging baseless charges. As a result, anyone supporting
right over wrong is at risk, especially Muslims at the wrong time in America.
-
- Freedom Archives expressed shock about Mehanna's conviction,
saying:
-
- Throughout his trial, prosecutors "presented no
evidence linking Tarek to an illegal action. Instead, it" presented
its usual jumble of meaningless, irrelevant videos, emails, recorded conversations,
translations, and paid informant testimonies to convince jurors of an innocent
suspect's guilt.
-
- Prosecutors also used "coercion, prejudice, and
ignorance" for their case. In response, defense lawyer Carney presented
facts responsibly and honorably. In the end, fear and injustice triumphed
over truth and judicial fairness.
-
- Everyone's now at risk, especially after political Washington
(at Obama's insistence) legislated tyranny.
-
- As a result, US citizens can be charged without evidence
of being associated with terrorist groups and threatening national security.
-
- US military forces can arrest and detain them indefinitely
without trial at home or abroad. Constitutional freedoms don't apply, only
guilt by accusation if charged.
-
- Presidents have unchecked authority to be judge, jury
and executioner. Tyranny replaced rule of law justice. Absolute power governs
America.
-
- No one anywhere any longer is safe. There's no place
to hide.
-
- Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at
lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
-
- Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and
listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive
Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at 10AM US Central
time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy
listening.
-
- http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/.
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