Islamist Extremism |  | The father of a victim in the Pan Am Flight 103 Lockerbie bombing holds up a banner of victims outside the federal court before the trial of the Libyan man accused of making the bomb that exploded the plane - Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images | Libyan Intelligence Official Charged for 1988 Lockerbie Bombing - Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi, a former Libyan intelligence official accused of making the explosive that brought down Pan Am Flight 103, appeared in federal court, charged with an act of international terrorism.
- The Justice Department announced that Mas’ud had been taken into U.S. custody, two years after it revealed that it had charged him in connection with the explosion.
- On December 21, 1988, in the deadliest terrorist attack in the history of the United Kingdom, Pan Am flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing all 270 passengers and crew. Read More
Four Charged for Conspiring to Support ISIS Mohammad David Hashimi, 35, of Potomac Falls, Va.; Abdullah At Taqi, 23, of East Elmhurst, Queens, N.Y.; Khalilullah Yousuf, 34, of Ontario, Canada; and Seema Rahman, 25, of Edison, N.J., were charged in federal court with conspiring to provide material support to ISIS. The defendants allegedly collected and transferred approximately $35,000 through cryptocurrency and other electronic means to bitcoin wallets and accounts they believed to be funding ISIS. Each defendant is being charged with conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, which carries a maximum statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison. Read More | | | | | Alt-Right & Alt-Left Extremism |  | The three men who were sentenced for plotting to kidnap Michigan governor - via ABC News screenshot | Three Militia Members Sentenced in Michigan Governor Kidnapping Plot - Pete Musico, Joseph Morrison and Paul Bellar were found guilty of providing “material support” for a terrorist act after they plotted to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
- Musico will serve at least 12 years in prison; Morrison was sentenced to serve at least 10 years in prison; and Bellar received at least seven years in prison.
- The individuals were members of a Boogaloo Boi-affiliated militia group called The Wolverine Watchmen. Read More
Aryan Brotherhood Member Faces Federal Gun Charges - Seth Patrick Anderson, aka “Shane Anderson,” of Hinesville, Ga., is awaiting sentencing after he pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
- According to the Department of Justice, Anderson is a member of the Aryan Brotherhood white supremacist street gang. Read More
Antifa Members Charged With Domestic Terrorism - Five Antifa activists arrested during a clash with law enforcement at the proposed site of Atlanta's new public safety academy have been charged with domestic terrorism.
- The protesters set up treehouses in the forest since June to block the construction of the facility and had begun attacking police and other emergency services workers at the scene with rocks, bottles and a gas bomb.
- Those arrested were Serena Hertel, 25, of California, Nicholas Olson, 25, of Nebraska, Francis Carroll, 22, of Maine, Arieon Robinson, 22, of Wisconsin, and Leonardo Vioselle, 20, of Macon, Ga.
- Convictions of domestic terrorism carry sentences of anywhere between five and 35 years in prison. Read More
Protestors Clash With Antifa in New York City - Police had to step between two groups of people outside of a New York City public library that was hosting a "Drag Queen Story Hour" for children.
- The protests went on for the entire duration of the story hour, and several shoving matches broke out. Read More
| | | | | Hate Crime |  | This photo provided by Olympia Fire Department shows damage from an arson that destroyed the Jehovah’s Witness kingdom hall in Olympia, Wash. - AP via Independent screenshot | Washington Man Charged for Arson of Jehovah’s Witness Hall - Mikey Diamond Starrett, aka Michael Jason Layes, 50, of Olympia, Wash., was indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with three arsons that damaged or destroyed Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Halls in 2018.
- If convicted, Starrett faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison on each charge of damage to religious property, and up to 10 years in prison if convicted on the unlawful possession of an unregistered firearm charge. Read More
Michigan Man Pleads Guilty for Death Threats to BLM Supporters - Kenneth Pilon, 61, pleaded guilty in federal district court to two hate crime charges for willfully intimidating and attempting to intimidate citizens from engaging in lawful speech and protests in support of Black Lives Matter. Read More
| | |  | Hostile Foreign Influence Operations |  | Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting on the national defense sector in 2015 - ALEXEI DRUZHININ/AFP via Getty Images | Russian Military and Intelligence Procurement Network Indicted - A 16-count indictment charges five Russian nationals and two U.S. nationals with conspiracy and other charges related to a global procurement and money laundering scheme on behalf of the Russian government.
- The defendants allegedly conspired to obtain military-grade and dual-use technologies from U.S. companies for Russia’s defense sector, and to smuggle sniper rifle ammunition, in violation of new U.S. sanctions imposed earlier this year.
- If convicted of bank fraud or bank fraud conspiracy, the defendants face a maximum of 30 years in prison. Read More
Former Twitter Employee Sentenced for Acting as Foreign Agent - Ahmad Abouammo, 45, formerly of Walnut Creek, Calif., was sentenced to 42 months in federal prison for his role in accessing, monitoring and conveying confidential and sensitive information that could be used to identify and locate Twitter users of interest to the Saudi royal family.
- In addition to the 42-month prison term, Abouammo was sentenced to three years of supervision following release from prison and issued a judgment for forfeiture of $242,000, representing the amount received by Abouammo as bribes. Read More
| | |  | Research and Trends in Extremism |  | The violent game 'God of War Ascension” - David McNew/Getty Images | Congress Asks Game Companies to Address Extremism - A recent report from the Anti-Defamation League about the rise of extremism in online game communities has led several members of Congress to pen a letter to ask top game companies how they are addressing extremism. Read More
| | | | | QUOTABLE
"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerated the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than the democratic state itself. That in its essence is fascism: ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or any controlling private power."
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
| | | NOTE TO OUR READERS: We have pulled out the salient points of the articles in this newsletter to keep you informed and focused on the most relevant, important and timely news in national security and extremism. While our national security experts stand behind the summary bullets and deem them trustworthy, Clarion Project does not endorse all the views expressed in the articles linked. | | | | |
