Wednesday, December 16, 2020

Kenyan National Indicted For Conspiring To Hijack Aircraft On Behalf Of The Al Qaeda-Affiliated Terrorist Organization Al Shabaab

 

Cholo Abdi Abdullah Obtained Pilot Training and Researched How to Hijack Aircraft in Order to Conduct a 9/11-Style Attack at the Direction of al Shabaab

 Audrey Strauss, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John C. Demers, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security, William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and Dermot Shea, the Commissioner of the Police Department for the City of New York (“NYPD”), announced the unsealing of an Indictment charging CHOLO ABDI ABDULLAH with six counts of terrorism-related offenses based on his activities as an operative of the foreign terrorist organization al Shabaab, including conspiring to hijack aircraft in order to conduct a 9/11-style attack in the United States.  ABDULLAH was arrested in July 2019 in the Philippines on local charges, and was subsequently transferred on December 15, 2020, in connection with his deportation from the Philippines, to the custody of U.S. law enforcement for prosecution on the charges in the Indictment.  ABDULLAH was transported from the Phillippines to the United States yesterday, and is expected to be presented today before Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger in Manhattan federal court.  The case is assigned to United States District Judge Analisa Torres.

Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said:  “As alleged, Cholo Abdi Abdullah, as part of a terrorist plot directed by senior al Shabaab leaders, obtained pilot training in the Philippines in preparation for seeking to hijack a commercial aircraft and crash it into a building in the United States.  This chilling callback to the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001, is a stark reminder that terrorist groups like al Shabaab remain committed to killing U.S. citizens and attacking the United States.  But we remain even more resolute in our dedication to investigating, preventing, and prosecuting such lethal plots, and will use every tool in our arsenal to stop those who would commit acts of terrorism at home and abroad.  Thanks to the outstanding investigative work of the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, and the FBI’s global partnerships with law enforcement agencies around the world, Abdullah’s plot was detected before he could achieve his deadly aspirations, and now he faces federal terrorism charges in a U.S. court.”

Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers said:  “This case, which involved a plot to use an aircraft to kill innocent victims, reminds us of the deadly threat that radical Islamic terrorists continue to pose to our nation.  And it also highlights our commitment to pursue and hold accountable anybody who seeks to harm our country and our citizens.  No matter where terrorists who plan to target Americans may be located, we will seek to identify them and bring them to justice.  We owe a debt of gratitude to the agents, detectives, analysts, and prosecutors who are responsible for this defendant’s arrest.”

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said:  “Nearly 20 years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, there are those who remain determined to conduct terror attacks against United States citizens. Abdullah, we allege, is one of them. He obtained a pilot’s license overseas, learning how to hijack an aircraft for the purpose of causing a mass-casualty incident within our borders. Fortunately, the exceptional work by the men and women assigned to the many agencies that comprise the FBI’s New York JTTF have, once again, disrupted a threat to our communities.”

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said: “As alleged in the federal indictment against him, Cholo Abdi Abdullah had obtained pilot training and begun plotting a terrorist attack against a target in the United States. But the outstanding work of our NYPD detectives and federal agents of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, along with all of our law enforcement partners, put an end to those plans and ensured that no one would be harmed.”

As alleged in the Indictment,[1] unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:

The charges in the Indictment unsealed today arise out of a coordinated scheme by the terrorist organization Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen, commonly known as “al Shabaab,” to target Americans both at home and abroad.  Al Shabaab, which has sworn allegiance to al Qaeda and serves as al Qaeda’s principal wing in East Africa, is responsible for numerous deadly terrorist attacks, including attacks that have claimed American lives.  Recently, al Shabaab has embarked on a string of terrorist attacks as part of an operation purportedly in response to the United States’ decision to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, which the group has dubbed “Operation Jerusalem Will Never be Judaized.”  In particular, these terrorist attacks perpetrated by al Shabaab include an attack on January 15, 2019 at a hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 21 people, including a U.S. national and survivor of al Qaeda’s 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in New York, New York; a September 30, 2019 attack on a U.S. military facility in Somalia; and a January 5, 2020 attack on another U.S. facility in Kenya, in which three Americans were killed.    

As alleged in the Indictment, ABDULLAH was an al Shabaab operative who participated in a plot to hijack commercial aircraft and crash them into a building in the United States.  Beginning in 2016, at the direction of a senior al Shabaab commander who was responsible for, among other things, planning the 2019 Nairobi hotel attack, ABDULLAH traveled to the Philippines and enrolled in a flight school there (the “Flight School”), for the purpose of obtaining training for carrying out the 9/11-style attack.  Between 2017 and 2019, ABDULLAH attended the Flight School on various occasions and obtained pilot’s training, ultimately completing the tests necessary to obtain his pilot’s license. 

While ABDULLAH was obtaining pilot training at the Flight School, he also conducted research into the means and methods to hijack a commercial airliner to conduct the planned attack, including security on commercial airliners and how to breach a cockpit door from the outside, information about the tallest building in a major U.S. city, and information about how to obtain a U.S. visa.

Thanks to the extraordinary work of the FBI, law enforcement authorities foiled this plot.  ABDULLAH has remained in custody since his initial arrest in the Philippines. 

ABDULLAH, 30, of Kenya, is charged with conspiring to provide and providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (al Shabaab), conspiring to murder U.S. nationals, conspiring to commit aircraft piracy, conspiring to destroy aircraft, and conspiring to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries.  ABDULLAH faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison.  The specific penalties for each of the charges is reflected in the chart below.  The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by a judge.

Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding efforts of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which principally consists of agents from the FBI and detectives from the NYPD.  Ms. Strauss also thanked the FBI Legal Attaché Offices in Nairobi, Kenya, and Manila, the Philippines; the FBI’s Hudson Valley Resident Agency; the New York State Police; the Counterterrorism Section of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division; the Office of International Affairs of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division; the U.S. Department of Defense; the Kenyan Directorate of Criminal Investigations, including the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit and the Joint Terrorism Task Force-Kenya; the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in Kenya; the Philippine National Police; the Philippine Department of Justice; the Joint Terrorism Financial Investigations Group-Philippines; and the Philippine Bureau of Immigration, for their assistance.

This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys David W. Denton, Jr., Sidhardha Kamaraju, and Elinor Tarlow are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorneys Jason Denney and Rebecca Magnone of the Counterterrorism Section.

The charges in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.                       

Count 

Charges 

Penalties 

1 

Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to a Foreign Terrorist Organization (18 U.S.C. § 2339B) 

20 years’ imprisonment 

2 

Provision of Material Support to a Foreign Terrorist Organization (18 U.S.C. § 2339B) 

20 years’ imprisonment 

3 

Conspiracy to Murder U.S. Nationals (18 U.S.C. § 2332(b)) 

Life imprisonment 

4 

Conspiracy to Commit Aircraft Piracy (49 U.S.C. § 46502) 

Life imprisonment; mandatory minimum of 20 years’ imprisonment 

5 

Conspiracy to Destroy Aircraft (18 U.S.C. § 32(a)) 

20 years’ imprisonment 

6 

Conspiracy to Commit Acts of Terrorism Transcending National Boundaries (18 U.S.C. § 2332b) 

Life imprisonment, consecutive to any other term of imprisonment imposed 

 [1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the description of the Indictment set forth herein are only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

Attorney General James Reminds White House to Maintain Presidential Records After Trump Administration’s Repeated Disregard for Law

 

AG James Leads Multistate Coalition in Sending Letter to White House Counsel
Reminding Staff to Comply with Presidential Records Act and Federal Records Act AG James Leads Multistate Coalition in Sending Letter to White House Counsel

 New York Attorney General Letitia James today led a multistate coalition of 15 attorneys general from around the nation in calling on the Trump Administration to comply with the Presidential Records Act and the Federal Records Act. In a letter to White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, Attorney General James and the coalition remind Cipollone that all staff in the Executive Office of the President — which includes President Donald Trump — must comply with the law and take all necessary steps to preserve and maintain presidential records, including tweets, notes of private conversations, and emails from private servers improperly used to conduct government work.

“The Trump Administration shouldn’t have to be told that they need to comply with the law and keep all records of official business, but the last four years have shown that the president needs to be constantly reminded what the law is and how he must comply with it,” said Attorney General James. “Even the president’s tweets, the private conversations he had with Russian President Putin, and Ivanka’s private email server must be archived. Every bit of this information belongs to the American people and the White House cannot deprive the public of this information.”

Since the beginning of the Reagan Administration — 40 years ago next month — the Presidential Records Act has dictated the statutory structure under which presidents must manage the records of their administrations. The law says that the American people “retain complete ownership, possession, and control of Presidential records.” Additionally, since 1950, the Federal Records Act has set guidelines as to how federal departments and agencies preserve and manage archived records.

But, according to multiple news reports, the Trump Administration has taken numerous actions displaying an utter disregard for their duties to properly preserve records, including:

  • President Trump concealing details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, according to a news report from The Washington Post.
  • President Trump tearing up presidential documents, requiring a records management analyst to tape back together documents that were supposed to be preserved, according to news reports in Politico and The New Yorker.
  • Presidential Advisor Ivanka Trump’s use of a private email server to send hundreds of emails to other government officials about business affecting the American people, according to a news report in The Washington Post.
  • Presidential Senior Advisor Jared Kushner’s use of a private email server that was used to communicate with other government officials about business affecting the American people, according to a news report in Politico, as well as his use of the messaging app WhatsApp to communicate with foreign leaders and other foreign government officials, according to a news report by CNN.

In today’s letter, Attorney General James and the coalition remind the White House counsel that President Trump and all White House staff — which includes anyone in the Executive Office of the President — must comply with the Presidential Records Act and the Federal Records Act. The coalition also asks for the White House counsel to confirm compliance with this request before the inauguration of President-elect Joseph Biden on January 20, 2021.

Joining Attorney General James in sending today’s letter to the White House are the attorneys general of Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Virginia, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

ACTING MAYOR DE BLASIO APPOINTS KERI BUTLER AS ACTING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC DESIGN COMMISSION


 Today Mayor de Blasio announced Keri Butler as the Acting Executive Director of the Public Design Commission (PDC), New York City’s design review agency. Butler, who has served at PDC in various roles for 15 years, has most recently served as the agency’s Deputy Executive Director.

 
“Keri Butler brings deep experience and a forward-looking vision to the Public Design Commission,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “The COVID-19 pandemic has meant our city must rely on its public spaces more than ever, and I know she’ll guide us toward creative, useful, and beautiful solutions for every New York City neighborhood.”
 
“New Yorkers deserve excellence and equity in public art and design, and I’m honored to lead this agency through a crucial moment in our city’s history,” said Keri Butler. “I look forward to enhancing the PDC’s mission and supporting innovative and sustainable designs that will improve lives and move New York City forward.”
 
“Public design is reflective of our values and must welcome all New Yorkers,” said Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Vicki Been. “With over a decade of experience, Keri has demonstrated a deep commitment to and excellent advocacy for incorporating values of equity and diversity, sustainability, and accessibility into New York City’s public design. I look forward to working with her in this new role.”
 
In addition to overseeing the PDC’s design review process, Butler has represented the Commission on panels and public events that highlight the City’s art collection and women designers. She has managed collaborative projects and events such as the Annual Awards for Excellence in Design, Women-Designed NYC, and Sustainable NYC. Additionally, Keri has worked with numerous agencies and private partners to preserve the City’s art collection and expand the City Hall tour program to highlight Black history.
 
Butler managed Superstorm Sandy recovery efforts in 2012-13 and led the Commission through the abrupt transition to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, developing online events that have increased public engagement and participation in the design review process. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art from the University of North Texas and a Master of Arts in Arts Administration from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.  
 

Congressman Adriano Espaillat - Congress Must #SavePublicTransit, Lives Depend On It!

 

The economy cannot recover without support of the MTA and public transit services around the nation.

 Representative Adriano Espaillat urged congressional leaders to include funding for the MTA and transit agencies around the nation in the fight to #SavePublicTransit as communities struggle to recover amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 


Organized by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), #SavePublicTransit Day is an effort to highlight the dire financial crisis facing the public transportation industry and urge officials to take immediate action.

"Since the start of the pandemic, the MTA has been essential in our efforts to combat this disease. New York City was able to overcome the first wave of the pandemic thanks to the MTA's 75,000 employees and the continued operation of its subways, buses and railroads. The transit agency is essential in our fight to recover and I urge my colleagues to work to save the MTA and transit systems around the country," said Rep. Espaillat.

It is critical that Congress move forward and provide emergency funding for public transit in the lame duck session before Congress recesses for the holiday. The industry is calling on Congress and the Administration to provide at least $32 billion in emergency funding to ensure that public transit agencies can survive and help our communities and nation recover from the economic fallout of the pandemic. Earlier this year, Congress provided $15 billion in aid to transit agencies in the CARES Act, and House Democrats have included larger sums in the HEROES Act, which has twice passed the House but sat dormant in the Republican-controlled Senate. The MTA received $4 billion from the CARES Act but still faces a daunting revenue shortfall.

“Immediate action needs to be taken to address the public transportation industry’s dire financial situation so that we can continue to serve essential employees every day and can help with the nation’s economic recovery,” said APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas. “The industry’s very survival is at stake.”

OPWDD to Open New Mental Health Extended Treatment Unit in Queens

 

New 12-Bed Unit Will Support Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Leaving Inpatient Psychiatric Hospital Settings

  The New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) today announced the opening of a new specialty mental health extended treatment unit (ETU) on the grounds of the former Bernard Fineson Developmental Center in Queens. The ETU will support adults over 18 from the five boroughs of New York City who have both an intellectual and developmental disability and a mental health diagnosis and are ready to leave inpatient treatment.

The new 12-bed unit opened its doors on December 14 and will be a "step down" unit, meaning that while the people being cared for still require a high level of care and observation, it is not to the degree required in an inpatient psychiatric hospital setting. People being treated in the unit will come directly from inpatient psychiatric treatment.

OPWDD said that the extended treatment unit will fill an urgent need that has been identified in the New York City Metropolitan area among people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who receive OPWDD services and also have a mental health diagnosis. The ETU's opening is the culmination of three years of planning and collaboration among various regulatory and provider agencies including the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH), the New York State Department of Health (DOH) and NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County. 

 "The ETU will be a tremendous source of support to the people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who also struggle with complex mental health issues and need specialized treatment before transitioning back into the community," said Commissioner Theodore Kastner, MD, MS.  "The ETU will mean better symptom management, better care and ultimately a much better overall quality of life both for the people who are struggling with these dual diagnoses and their families." 

OPWDD said that services at the specialty unit will be limited to individuals 18 years of age and older who receive OPWDD services and live in the five boroughs of New York City. 

OPWDD will employ staff with specialized training to operate the new unit including a psychiatrist, physician, program manager, psychologist, registered nurses, social workers, recreation therapists, occupational therapist, nutritionist and direct support professionals. 

For more information about the Extended Treatment Unit, contact OPWDD at info@opwdd.ny.gov.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

While this site is in Queens it is important to note the provider agencies are not from Queens, and this site is open to people from all five boroughs in New York City.


Mayor to Host Press Conference For 'Invited Press Only'.

 

Day 32, this should prove my point.

Like I said, Mayor Bill de Blasio wants to answer questions from only his friends in the media, and today's mayor's public schedule proves it.

INVITED PRESS ONLY. There will be a Q-and-A. 


 

THE CITY OF NEW YORK

OFFICE OF THE MAYOR

NEW YORK, NY 10007 


PUBLIC SCHEDULE FOR MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO FOR WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2020

  

On Wednesday, Mayor de Blasio will hold a media availability and observe vaccinations for healthcare workers at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst. This event is open to invited press only. There will be Q-and-A.








Tuesday, December 15, 2020

My Decision on Running in the 11th City Council District - By Robert Press

 



When looking at the candidates for the 11th City Council race there are few if any of the candidates who can match any part of what I have accomplished. I may be older than the candidates, but with age comes experience that those candidates lack. Which of the candidates has the experience in education that I have, having been not only a Parents Association President, President of District Ten's Presidents Council with over 45,000 mostly minority students, but an officer of the Chancellor's Parent Advisory Council for all 1.3 million mostly majority minority NYC Public School students, advising chancellor's, and holding them accountable.


As a member of Community Board 8, I gained valuable experience as a Vice-Chair of two committees and became the Chair of the Budget Committee where because of my experience with city agencies the 50th Precinct received a new police van, the red tape was cut to finally allow for the construction of a new library in Van Cortlandt Village, and other items on the Budget Priority list were accomplished. 


Back when the Jerome Park Reservoir was the prime site for the Croton Water Filtration Plant, CB 8 appointed me to the JPRCAC that prevented the city from building the water filtration plant in the reservoir, and I gained valuable information about the NYC water supply system, and why it was so important that a water filtration plant was built to filter the Croton Reservoir water that is now being used in place of better quality Catskill/Delaware water that needs repairs to its tunnel. 


My years as a political reporter and Associate Editor of a Muslim Media newspaper gives me another advantage by getting to know other key people, what they and their followers are thinking. I have been able to question people in power up to the mayor, when in 2016 I was the first reporter to question Mayor de Blasio on the living conditions in NYCHA buildings. Since then I have asked the mayor a variety of questions relating to policing, homelessness, parks, education, and MIH-ZQA which is the key to getting more affordable housing.       


It would not be too late to enter a City Council race, unless a political club whose president has said there will be a special election one month before the mayor has to make that call. Said political club is also pushing its club elections off due to COVID-19, but trying to rush an endorsement vote so the club assemblyman's son who is one of seven announced candidates will have the club's endorsement. In fact, with the COVID-19 indicators continuing to rise two weeks after Election Day, all special elections should be postponed to the June Primary as was the case in March of 2020. 


That and the fact that one of the other announced candidates 80th A.D. District leader Marcos Sierra made a statement on his official City Council D11 Facebook page, "So you feel either of those contests can better benefit from an older white cis male running to represent a majority minority district huh?Robert Press" is why probably the best qualified candidate and others will not be entering the 11th City Council race.


Finally there is early voting for a special election going on right now in the Northeast Bronx 12th City Council district. Indoor dining has been stopped in NYC, and the mayor says that the city should be going on pause again right before the Christmas holiday. I can not see how this special election is happening or others that may be called by the mayor due to upcoming departures of Bronx City Council members be called, before the public can get the COVID-19 vaccine in the spring of 2021. All special elections should be postponed until the June primary 2021 date as was done in early 2020 when all special elections were postponed to the June 2020 primary date.


As for me, I have decided to not run in the 11th City Council race, and will be looking at a more localized assembly race in 2022. I will cover the 11th City Council race, to let the voters know as much as they can about the candidates, and exactly how to vote in Rank Choice Voting. RCV will bring its own problems, as one high placed Bronx Democratic Party principal and I had a very interesting discussion about RCV. I gave that person some interesting facts about what should happen in certain elections where RCV is to be used. 


Governor Cuomo Signs the 'Protect Our Courts' Act

 

Legislation Builds Upon Governor's Executive Order to Ensure New Yorkers Can Freely Access Justice System Without Fear of Being Targeted by Federal Immigration Authorities When Traveling to and from State Court Proceedings

Protections Will Help Ensure that New York Courts Can Continue Work for all the State's Residents

 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today signed the Protect Our Courts Act (S00425A/A2176A) to ensure New Yorkers can freely access the justice system without fear of being targeted by federal immigration authorities. The legislation addresses longstanding concerns that federal immigration enforcement was deterring immigrants from appearing in New York State courts and impeding the fair administration of justice. It builds upon a prior executive order by the Governor and a directive by the chief judge of the New York State Unified Court System.

"Unlike this federal government, New York has always protected our immigrant communities," Governor Cuomo said. "This legislation will ensure every New Yorker can have their day in court without fear of being unfairly targeted by ICE or other federal immigration authorities." 

The bill would not prohibit an arrest warrant from being authorized by a judge. However, an immigration-related courthouse arrest based on an administrative warrant, or without a warrant, would not be permitted. This is currently the requirement on state land and in state buildings per Executive Order 170.1, issued in 2018 to protect New Yorkers who are accessing essential services on state property to do so without fear of arrest.