Indian indicted in US over weapons use

An India-born Gujarati is one of the three men indicted by the US Justice Department on charges of conspiring to use WMDs.

An India-born Gujarati man living in Britain is one of the three men indicted by the US Justice Department on charges of conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction and destroying important buildings.

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The four-count indictment announced by the department named Dhiren Barot (known by his aliases Esa al-Britani, Abu Esa al-Britani, Esa al-Hindi, and Issa al-Hindi), Nadeem Tarmohamed; and Qaisar Shaffi.

It alleged that the "defendants entered the US in 2000 and 2001 to conduct surveillance of several buildings in New York, northern New Jersey and Washington as part of a conspiracy to damage and destroy the buildings".

After discovery of the surveillance activities, the Homeland Security Advisory level was raised from "Elevated" (Yellow) to "High" (Orange) for these areas until November 2004.

The Justice Department said in a statement that the conspiracies to attack buildings were ongoing until August 2004 when the defendants were arrested in Britain.

The indictment was announced by Deputy Attorney General James B. Comey, Assistant Attorney Christopher A. Wray of the Criminal Division, US Attorney David N. Kelley of the Southern District of New York and FBI Executive Assistant Director Gary Bald.

"The conspiracy laid out in the indictment was designed to kill as many Americans as possible, and the alleged surveillance of these buildings makes these allegations all the more serious," Comey said.

"Through the hard work of many of our law enforcement partners both here and overseas, we were able to hold those behind the conspiracy accountable for their actions and ensure that their plans to harm our homeland never materialized."

According to Kelley: "The fact that these terrorists stalked their targets while surrounded by innocent and unsuspecting Americans going about their everyday affairs reminds all of us that a successful campaign against terrorism calls upon all of us to be ever-vigilant.

"The entire law enforcement community is committed to this battle and will travel the globe to bring to justice any and all terrorists, particularly those plotting to commit terrorist acts on our soil."

Bald said: "These indictments show once again that the battle against terrorism is global, and to win it, we must be able to investigate aggressively and piece together intelligence from the country and across the world.

The Justice Department said: "The defendants are currently in custody in the United Kingdom, facing criminal charges in that country. At the conclusion of those proceedings, the US intends to seek the extradition of all three defendants so that they may stand trial in this country."

If convicted of the charges in the US, the defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison on the charge of conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, 15 years in prison on each material support count, and 20 years in prison on the charge of conspiring to damage and destroy buildings.

The indictment alleged that at various times from on or about Aug 17, 2000, through April 8, 2001, the three defendants visited and conducted surveillance on buildings and surrounding neighborhoods in the US, including the International Monetary Fund World Headquarters and the World Bank Headquarters in Washington.

This surveillance allegedly included, among other things, video surveillance conducted in Manhattan in or about April 2001 and officials said it was part of the conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction.

It alleged that in or about 1998, Barot served as a lead instructor at a jehadi training camp in Afghanistan where recruits were taught to use weapons and received other paramilitary training. '

"In about June 2000, Barot allegedly applied to a college in New York to conceal the true purpose of his subsequent trips to the US," it said.