Minneapolis Man Indicted for Providing Support to Somali Terrorists
| U.S. Attorney’s Office November 19, 2009 |
A federal indictment against Omer Abdi Mohamed, age 24, was unsealed today, following the Minneapolis man’s arrest and initial appearance in court. The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury on Tuesday of this week, charges Mohamed, also known as “Brother Omer” and “Galeyr,” with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and related charges.
Specifically, the indictment alleges that from September of 2007 to the present, Mohamed conspired with others known and unknown to the grand jury to provide material support and resources, namely, financial support and personnel, knowing and intending that they were to be used in preparation for and in carrying out a violation of 18 U.S.C. 956(a)(1), which is conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim, or injure persons in a foreign country. Furthermore, Mohamed allegedly provided that support during that time period. The indictment also details overt acts in furtherance of the conspiracy. Those acts include the travel of numerous men from Minneapolis to Somalia. The men included, among others, Kamal Said Hassan, Abdifatah Yusuf Isse, and Salah Osman Ahmed.
If convicted, Omer Abdi Mohamed faces a potential maximum penalty of 15 years in prison on count one, 15 years in prison on count two, and life in prison on count three. All sentences are determined by a federal district court judge. This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney W. Anders Folk and U.S. Department of Justice, CounterTerrorism Section Attorney William Narus.