"Plot to Kill Americans"

NewsBreakerNov 20 '12

Host @DavidBegnaud delivers breaking news and today's trending buzz in 45 seconds. RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KTLA) -- Four Southern California men have been charged with plotting to join al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan in order to kill Americans. According to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in the Central District of California, the defendants conspired to provide material support to terrorists in preparation for or in carrying out: conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim, or injure persons and damage property in a foreign country; killing and attempting to kill officers and employees of the United States; killing nationals of the United States; conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction outside the United States; and bombing places of public use and government facilities. The defendants, listed below, are also known by alias identities listed in the criminal complaint. -Sohiel Omar Kabir, 34, a former resident of Pomona and naturalized United States citizen, born in Afghanistan. -Ralph Deleon, 23, of Ontario, a lawful permanent resident alien, born in the Philippines. -Miguel Alejandro Santana Vidriales, 21, of Upland, a lawful permanent resident, born in Mexico and whose application for citizenship is pending in the United States. -Arifeen David Gojali, 21, of Riverside, a United States citizen. The complaint, which was unsealed Monday during the defendants’ initial appearance in U.S. District Court, alleges that in 2010, Kabir introduced Deleon and Santana to radical and violent Islamic doctrine and various extremist material, including essays and lectures by now-deceased al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader, Anwar Al-Awlaqi. Kabir traveled overseas in December 2011 and later to Afghanistan in July 2012, where he continued to communicate with Santana and DeLeon to arrange for their travel to join him in Afghanistan, according to the complaint. The complaint alleges that Kabir told Santana and Deleon that he had made contacts with individuals who have connections to terrorist organizations. Kabir further said that he would wait for their arrival before departing to a training location in Afghanistan and that, when they arrived, they would meet "the students" and "the professors." According to the complaint, the term "students" referred to the Taliban and the term "professors" referred to al-Qaeda.