determined that federal law only allowed him to hand Dhakane two concurrent 10-year sentences for the crime the government actually charged him with — making false statements on his application for asylum in the United States.

mysanantonio.com

 

Man suspected of bringing jihadists to U.S. sentenced for lying on asylum request.

A federal judge agreed with prosecutors Thursday that Somali national Ahmed Dhakane helped smuggle hundreds of people into the United States, knowing that some of them claimed to be members of terrorist groups.

He also agreed that Dhakane raped and impregnated one of his clients so the 16-year-old could pose as his wife during his own border crossing.

But in the end, U.S. District Judge 

Dhakane, 25, pleaded guilty to those charges in November, two years after entering the Brownsville port of entry and applying for asylum.

The government is obviously still investigating and can file other charges if it manages to make a case, Dhakane’s attorney said during the daylong sentencing hearing, asking the judge to focus only on what his client pleaded guilty to.

Prosecutors later declined to comment on whether an investigation continues or other charges are possible.

“Based on the evidence and the law, he received a fair sentence,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Roomberg.

During his detention, Dhakane was interviewed three times, said San Antonio-based FBI Agent Mark Wagoner, an expert on East African terrorist groups. Initially, Dhakane said he fled Somalia to escape persecution because he had converted to Christianity.

It wasn’t until agents played him a secretly recorded conversation between himself and an informant that Dhakane made any mention of smuggling or terrorist-affiliated organizations, Wagoner said.

In the recording, Dhakane told Abraham Egal, a Somali-born U.S. citizen who was paid $20,000 to go undercover at the detention center in Pearsall, that he had previously fought in Ethiopia with Al-Ittihad Al-Islami.

Considered a terrorist group, Al-Ittihad Al-Islami aims to bring Muslim rule to Somalia and is believed to have ties to Osama Bin Laden, Wagoner said.

Dhakane told the agent he had embellished his history to Egal but acknowledged once working for al-Barakaat, a money remittance system that the U.S. government has claimed helped finance terrorists.

Dhakane eventually gave federal authorities 16 full or partial names of people he smuggled, Wagoner said.

“He identified (about seven of) them as extremists who wanted to die fighting jihad,” the agent said. “He indicated he didn’t really know why they were coming here. He said if the jihad ever came to the United States, these people would pick up arms against the United States.”

The interviews caused agents to be “very concerned,” but didn’t lead to other charges, Wagoner said.

“At this point, I don’t see (a specific terrorist) plot, per se, for the people he smuggled,” Wagoner said. “That doesn’t change the fact these people are affiliated with these groups.”

Wagoner said Dhakane offered to cooperate with the government by identifying smuggling routes and extremists in the United States and abroad, but only if the charges against him were dropped and he was allowed to immigrate. Authorities didn’t consider it a serious offer, Wagoner said.

During the conversations with Egal, Dhakane also said one of his clients, now a taxi driver in Chicago, had fought with jihadists in Afghanistan.

Two other East African immigrants now living in the United States testified that they had dealings with Dhakane while in Brazil en route to America. He appeared to be untrustworthy, they both said.

“He often used to talk about that he used to work in Al-Ittihad,” said Doran Osman Nuur, a Somali. But that claim directly contradicted with Dhakane’s claim he was a Christian, which would have put his life in jeopardy if dealing with such groups, he said.

“It’s confusing,” Nuur said. “Sometimes I believe he’s Christian but sometimes I don’t believe.”

As for the rape allegation, the teen might be making up the story so as not to garner ire from her family for having a baby with a Christian, said federal public defender Alfredo Villarrreal. Had she really been traumatized, she would not have sent Dhakane photos of their child with an attached note that said, “I love you, Dad,” he argued.

Prosecutors, however, described her as a confused teen trying to salvage her life by keeping contact with him. They did not call her to testify Thursday.

Comments

comments