National Terror Alert  |  May 17, 2010

Authorities Watch For Suspected Member of Terrorist Group Al Shabaab

Al Shabaab. Photo: Feisal Omar/Courtesy Reuters

KHOU News in Houston Texas reports that a Homeland Security Alert is asking local authorities to keep their eyes open for a potential terror suspect. According to the report the alert focuses on a suspected member of the terrorist group Al Shabaab and indicates he may be attempting to travel to the U.S. through Mexico.

Al Shabaab is a terrorist group based in Somalia with links to the Somali attacks dramatized in the movie "Blackhawk Down." A few months ago, it announced its allegiance to Al Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden.

The report points out that the route from Somalia to Texas is shorter than many Americans might think, with smugglers traveling through Mexico to reach the U.S. Two weeks ago, a federal indictment was filed in San Antonio against a Somali citizen. It alleges the suspect led a "large scale smuggling enterprise," moving east Africans into the U.S., including members of a terrorist group AIAI. (more on this story below)

Source – KHOU News.

Somalian Charged with Making False Statements on Application for Asylum

Defendant is Accused of Making False Statements Concerning Participation in Terrorist Organizations

Ahmed Muhammed Dhakane is charged with two counts of making false statements to federal authorities. The first count alleges that Dhakane omitted his involvement with Somali commercial enterprise Al-Barakat and AIAI, both listed as Specially Designated Terrorist entities, on his 2008 application for asylum.

According to a second count, Dhakane also lied about how he got into United States. The indictment alleges that he did not disclose that he "participated in and later ran a large-scale human smuggling enterprise out of Brazil." The U.S. government says the enterprise is responsible for smuggling hundreds of AIAI affiliated Somalis and other East Africans into the United States.

On March 28, 2008, Dhakane surrendered to U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents near Brownsville, Texas. He was being held in an Immigration Detention Facility located in Pearsall, Texas, when he allegedly made the false statements to federal authorities.

Upon conviction, Dhakane faces up to 10 years in federal prison per count.

This case was investigated by agents with the Joint Terrorism Task Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S. Border Patrol, and the Department of Homeland Security. Assistant United States Attorney Mark Roomberg is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

An indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven in guilty in a court of law.

Source – DOJ Press Release

Source – IPT

Original alert here.