To aid al-Qaida affiliates attack the US.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Gufran Ahmed Kauser Mohammed, a 31 year-old US citizen, pleaded guilty last week to a single charge of “conspiring to provide material support to designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations al-Qa’ida, al-Qa’ida in Iraq/al-Nusrah Front (“AQI/al-Nusrah Frontâ€), and al-Shabaab.â€
The US Department of Justice revealed that Mohammed (31), along with Mohamed Hussein Said, were charged in a 15-count indictment of conspiring to aid known terrorist groups, presumably for attacks against the US. Although a US citizen, Mohammed was a resident of Dammam, Saudi Arabia at the time of his arrest last year, and was originally born in India, according to Miami’s Local 10 News.
Mohammed used Western Union’s money transfer services to wire around $96,000 to the al-Nusrah Front, which is an al-Qaeda affiliate that is active in Syria, and the al-Shabaab group, which is most active in Syria. Undercover agents with the FBI were able to track these monetary transfers, and eventually nabbed Mohammed last summer.
Said was the alleged recipient of this money, and was believed to be a “fundraiser, recruiter, and supporter†of the aforementioned terror networks. Additionally, the Department of Justice press release says that both Mohammed and Said “agreed to support al-Qa’ida and AQI/al-Nusrah Front by recruiting and moving experienced al-Shabaab fighters to the conflict in Syria.â€
Mohammed’s guilty plea was entered before US District Judge Ursula Ungaro, of the Southern District of Florida. The undercover FBI agents that ultimately brought Mohammed down were based out of Miami. Sentencing for Mohammed is officially set for October 24 of this year, although the amount of jail time he currently faces was not disclosed.