From USA Today:
“Possible terror ties in American
Airlines sabotage case? Prosecutor says yes”
The American Airlines mechanic
says he tampered with a plane carrying 150 people in hopes of earning overtime.
The saga of the American Airlines mechanic charged with sabotaging a plane took
another disturbing turn Wednesday when a federal judge in Florida denied bail
over concerns about the worker's potential terrorism ties. Prosecutors cited
two factors in pushing for the continued jailing of Abdul-Majeed Maroud Ahmed
Alani, a 60-year-old mechanic who was with American since 1988 and previously
worked for Alaska Airlines: he has a brother in Iraq who may be involved with
the Islamic State extremist group and has made statements about wishing harm on
non-Muslims, according to the Miami Herald and the Associated Press. “I have
evidence before me that suggests you could be sympathetic to terrorists,” U.S.
Magistrate Judge Chris McAliley said during the bond hearing, the Herald
reported. McAliley called Alani's alleged tampering with the aircraft “highly
reckless and unconscionable,'' the newspaper said. Since Alani's arrest, the
Herald said, investigators with the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force found
out Alani lied about taking a trip to Iraq in March to visit his brother and
that he told a co-worker at American this summer that his brother was a member
of the extremist group and was kidnapped. Also reportedly found: Alani's smart
phone had a "disturbing'' ISIS video on it that he shared and that he sent
$700 to someone in Iraq, where he was born and has family. Alani is a
naturalized U.S. citizen from Iraq. He is not charged with a terror-related
crime. His court appointed attorney suggested the government is overblowing
Alani's motives. The mechanic previously told investigators he was only trying
to get the flight canceled or delayed, not hurt passengers. He said he was
motivated by a bitter labor dispute between American and its mechanics that has
canceled thousands of flights and hurt overtime. "We don't believe he
intentionally endangered the safety of people'' on that flight, said Christian
Dunham, an assistant federal public defender representing Alani. "I think
the government is blowing this out of proportion.'' Alani is charged with
sabotaging a Boeing 737 with 150 people aboard at Miami International Airport
in July by tampering with a key computer system before the flight. The
aircraft, which was bound for the Bahamas, did not take off and no one was
injured. American Airlines terminated Alani last week after the FAA revoked his
mechanic's license in an emergency order, according to spokesman Ross
Feinstein. Alani is due to be arraigned Friday.
^ Even if you disregard the fact that
he is a naturalized American born in Iraq, a Muslim with ISIS videos on his
phone the main fact that he willfully and knowingly sabotaged an airplane with
the hope of it causing harm or even death to the 150 people on-board (on the ground
or in the air) is a terrorist act in itself. He may have done the sabotage for
non-terrorist reasons like wanting to make more money, but the fact that he
damaged a plane that was going to be flown shortly with innocent men, women and
children on-board is terrorism. He should be charged with being a terrorist
(whether as a domestic terrorist or an ISIS-backed terrorist I don’t know at
this point.) ^
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