[News] Al-Hussayen faces terrorism, fraud charges

Tue Apr 13 08:47:53 EDT 2004

Ex-U of I grad student's trial starts Tuesday
Al-Hussayen faces terrorism, fraud charges
http://www.idahostatesman.com/Common/PrintMe.asp?ID=65148
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<mailto:porr at idahostatesman.com>Patrick Orr
The Idaho Statesman
More than a year after he was arrested at his Moscow home and accused of 
being a terrorist, former University of Idaho graduate student Sami 
Al-Hussayen will get a chance to defend himself in court.

The jury trial for Al-Hussayen, 34, jailed since February 2003, begins with 
jury selection Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Al-Hussayen faces three 
counts of aiding terrorism and 11 counts of visa fraud in a case that will 
focus the national media spotlight on Idaho. The oft-delayed trial is 
expected to take six to eight weeks.

Federal prosecutors say Al-Hussayen, a Saudi Arabian national studying 
computer science, used his graduate student status as a cover for funneling 
money and technical expertise to maintain Web sites for organizations that 
support terrorism.

Al-Hussayen was among about 20 people arrested as part of a nationwide 
investigation. The case brought unwanted attention to Moscow, a quiet 
university town unaccustomed to international media scrutiny, and prompted 
U of I officials to respond to perceptions that the campus had become a 
terrorist cell.

This week´s trial will draw journalists from the major TV networks, The 
Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and others that have requested 
media credentials, according to the U.S. attorney´s office in Boise.

And not just media will be arriving en masse: A contingent of graduate 
students from Moscow will travel to Boise to support Al-Hussayen, said 
Monica Schurtman, an associate professor at U of I.

It´s very much on people´s radar screen. ... People understand ´innocent 
till proven guilty´ here,Schurtman said. Based on what has come out so far, 
there doesn´t seem to be a lot of evidence against him.

Al-Hussayen has many supporters in Moscow, said Schurtman, who represented 
Al-Hussayen´s wife in deportation hearings last year. Friends and 
supporters point out that Al-Hussayen publicly condemned the Sept. 11, 
2001, attacks and participated in a peace vigil.

Al-Hussayen´s wife and the couple´s three children returned to Saudi Arabia 
in January after being threatened with deportation.

Federal prosecutors say Al-Hussayen essentially lied when he said he was 
simply a student in the United States studying computer science. They argue 
that Al-Hussayen was connected with two radical Muslim sheiks who have ties 
to Osama bin Laden; that his Web sites advocated violence against the U.S.; 
and that he helped funnel money to terrorist organizations through several 
controversial charities.

They say Al-Hussayen routed about $300,000 he received from overseas 
sources to the Michigan-based Islamic Assembly of North America and 
provided computer expertise to the group.

The indictment alleges that Al-Hussayen operated more than a dozen Web 
sites, including some for the Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation and two 
radical Saudi sheiks,U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft said in March. It 
further alleges that Al-Hussayen knew and intended that his computer 
services and expertise would be used to recruit and raise funds for violent 
jihad around the world and that he conspired to conceal the nature of his 
support for terrorists.

David Nevin, the Boise attorney representing Al-Hussayen, has steadfastly 
denied the government´s claims, describing Al-Hussayen as a peaceful 
graduate student and community leader who condemned the violence of the 
Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Nevin, who was not available for comment Friday, has characterized the case 
against Al-Hussayen as innuendo and guilt by association.

The sides, which have been sparring over the evidence for more than a year, 
say their cases will be clear by the end of the two-month trial.

Dozens of witnesses are expected to testify for both sides, including 
terrorism analysts, FBI and immigration agents, Internet experts, U of I 
professors and some former students.

Prosecutors allege that Al-Hussayen was part of a network of a web of 
contacts and organizations that helped the charities aid terrorism.

Federal officials also have looked at the travel and meetings of 
Al-Hussayen´s uncle, a Saudi Arabian religious official, involved with the 
charities. Federal investigators, in court documents, claim that Saleh 
Abdel Rahman Al-Hussayen met with charity officials in Ann Arbor, Mich., 
just prior to the Sept, 11, 2001, attacks. He then traveled to Virginia, 
say court documents, where he stayed in the same hotel used by three 
hijackers who crashed a jet into the Pentagon on Sept. 11.

Prosecutors will attempt to paint a picture of Al-Hussayen as a terrorist 
sympathizer using sleepy Moscow as a cover to support Web sites with links 
to terrorist groups and radical Muslim clerics; the defense says it will 
show Al-Hussayen was an innocent computer student unfairly targeted by 
overzealous investigators.

While federal prosecutors have been saying for more than a year that 
Al-Hussayen was linked to radical Muslim organizations, an actual charge of 
conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists wasn´t filed against 
him until January, less than two weeks before his jury trial on visa 
violations was supposed to begin.

Nevin questioned the timing, saying the government could have brought the 
terrorism charge at any time but chose to do it so close to the trial date 
to make it difficult for the defense to respond.

Prosecutors maintained that the terrorism charges were delayed because of 
the volume of computer evidence to be assessed. The federal judge ruled 
that the timing of the charges did not violate Al-Hussayen´s rights or deny 
him justice.

Another terrorism charge was filed against Al-Hussayen in March.

If found guilty of the conspiracy charge, Al-Hussayen could be sentenced to 
up to 15 years in prison. The maximum penalty for visa fraud is five years 
in prison. If he is convicted on any of the charges and the judge finds a 
terrorism connection, the penalties could be increased.

The delays are over, and prosecutors are ready to try the case, said Jean 
McNeil of the U.S. attorney´s office.

There will be no more delays,she said. There was just an incredible volume 
of evidence to sift through in this case.

To offer story ideas or comments, contact Patrick Orr
<mailto:porr at idahostatesman.com>porr at idahostatesman.com or 373-6619

Edition Date: 04-11-2004

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