Ohio Al Qaeda Member Admits WMD Attack Plan Involvement

Home grown terrorism here in the U.S. has another face to it - Christopher Paul, is that face. ABC News here has the story of how Christopher Paul is close to being sentenced for terrorism plotting here in the U.S. Here's part of that story:

Upon his return to Ohio, Paul purchased computer equipment, a laser range-finder and night vision gear to be used by jihadists. He also wired $1,760 to the German terror cell, the statement says.
At the time the court unsealed his indictment last year, sources told ABC News that Paul was an associate of convicted terrorists Iyman Farris and Nuradin Abdi.

Farris is a naturalized citizen of Kashmir descent and Abdi is a Somalian both convicted of the plotting to blow up an Ohio shopping mall.

Here's another excerpt from the story:

Officials have said the three men conducted training in Burr Oak State Park in southeast Ohio. The statement of facts says that state park records show Paul and others stayed at the park, and that witnesses observed Paul and members of the Columbus cell "replicating terrorist training" that he had received overseas.

It appears that Paul will be sentenced to 20 years but technically, could receive life imprisonment. I think the isssue in my mind at this moment is if the U.S. can continue the uncovering of these home grown cells in the future...that is if we elect a Dem President and continue down a Dem controlled Congress. I think that is a legitimate concern, not just biased politics. I don't think anyone can argue that the Bush administration has played hardball with terrorism in the U.S. and from all indications, that stance is going to soften under new leadership.

Ohio Al Qaeda Member Admits WMD Plot


Abdi, a Somali national, was charged with planning to blow up a Columbus-area shopping mall. He pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists last year, and a judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison in November.
A naturalized U.S. citizen born in the Kashmir region, Faris had been working as a truck driver in Columbus before he pleaded guilty in 2003 to plotting to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge. That year, a judge sentenced him to 20 years imprisonment. He later became a government informant in the Abdi case.
Officials have said the three men conducted training in Burr Oak State Park in southeast Ohio. The statement of facts says that state park records show Paul and others stayed at the park, and that witnesses observed Paul and members of the Columbus cell "replicating terrorist training" that he had received overseas.
The charge Paul pleaded guilty to carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, but the agreement notes that both parties deemed 20 years imprisonment as "appropriate." A federal judge will formally sentence Paul later this year.