Because of the FBI's efforts, Mohamed Osman Mohamud was prevented from igniting a bomb at a Christmas Tree-lighting celebration.
Mr. Mohamud, thinking he was going to ignite the bomb, drove to the corner of the square at Southwest Yamhill Street and Sixth Avenue in downtown Portland and attempted to set off the explosives packed inside his van.
The public was never in danger, however, since the "bomb" had been provided to Mr. Mohamud by the FBI, and wouldn't have ignited in the middle of a forest fire.
We do not yet know if the FBI provided Mr. Mohamud with the van.
The FBI did help him test a similar bomb someplace out in the boondocks.
This is called entrapment.
They have given the citizens of Portland Oregon some Performance Art that will encourage them to give away more and more of their rights, privacy, and property in the name of public safety.
In the words of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, "The system worked".
The "Idiot Bait" logo came from here.
6 comments:
My town is having a tree lighting this week. Hope it goes off before the TSA starts pat downs for entry to public events.
oh, fuck you! it's not entrapment. the man wanted to kill people and tried to commit mass murder. you reflexively find someone else to blame. law enforcement is always on the wrong side of the law in your mind, isnt it? pathetic.
This is exactly right, had this guy been left to his own devices the most terroristic act he would accomplish would have been playing as the "Taliban" in Medal of Honor on his playstation 3.
Entrapment?
Not quite. He was ready, willing, and able to commit the crime.
Unless he can prove that he likely would not have committed the crime but for the inducement, he's guilty. He would have to prove the scheme was the government's idea, not his; the government persuaded him to commit the crime; and he was not ready and willing to commit the crime before being given the means or opportunity.
Moreover, every wannabe jihadi is now scared that anyone they contact could be a federal agent. This is just good intelligence and counterterrorism.
I am surprised they let it get as far as an attempted detonation. The conspiracy charges alone could get him decades in prison without any risks.
Luring in the fish with the right bait is better than illegal surveillance or waiting for an attack.
If he had contacted a REAL jihadi, we would be reading news of a terrorist attack today and security would be tightened, not relaxed, at airports and other places.
Oops. I mis-stated my thoughts.
The government has the burden to prove he was not entrapped beyond a reasonable doubt. If the defendant can prove any of those three conditions or raise a reasonable doubt, he will go free.
I'm guessing the FBI knows the definition of entrapment and took great care to get video and audio recordings of this guy. The tricky part will be keeping the identity of their phony jihadi agent a secret.
The question is this....
Would the non-crime have even been considered if the Feds hadn't been encouraging this guy every step of the way?
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