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<tt><br>
Ex-U of I grad student's trial starts Tuesday<br>
Al-Hussayen faces terrorism, fraud charges <br>
<a href="http://www.idahostatesman.com/Common/PrintMe.asp?ID=65148" eudora="autourl">http://www.idahostatesman.com/Common/PrintMe.asp?ID=</a><a href="http://www.idahostatesman.com/Common/PrintMe.asp?ID=65148" eudora="autourl">65148<br>
</a></tt><img src="cid:5.2.0.9.2.20040413054616.03252800@66.103.156.66.0" alt="cbd22.jpg"><br><br>
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<a href="mailto:porr@idahostatesman.com">Patrick Orr</a><br>
The Idaho Statesman<br>
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. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
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.<br><br>
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.
<br><br>
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. <br><br>
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.<br><br>
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. <br><br>
Al-Hussayen´s wife and the couple´s three children returned to Saudi
Arabia in January after being threatened with deportation. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
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.<br><br>
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. <br><br>
Nevin, who was not available for comment Friday, has characterized the
case against Al-Hussayen as innuendo and guilt by association.<br><br>
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.
<br><br>
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. <br><br>
Prosecutors allege that Al-Hussayen was part of a network of a web of
contacts and organizations that helped the charities aid terrorism.
<br><br>
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.
<br><br>
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. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
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. <br><br>
Another terrorism charge was filed against Al-Hussayen in March.
<br><br>
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.
<br><br>
The delays are over, and prosecutors are ready to try the case, said Jean
McNeil of the U.S. attorney´s office. <br><br>
There will be no more delays,she said. There was just an incredible
volume of evidence to sift through in this case.<br><br>
To offer story ideas or comments, contact Patrick Orr<br>
<a href="mailto:porr@idahostatesman.com">porr@idahostatesman.com</a> or
373-6619<br><br>
Edition Date: 04-11-2004<br><br>
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