Two Found Guilty In Terror Conspiracy

Two men were found guilty of conspiring to support terrorism after a month-long federal jury trial in Albany, NY.

Mohammed Hossain, a 51-year-old Bangladeshi immigrant (and U.S. citizen) and pizza shop owner, was convicted of all 27 counts brought against him including money laundering, conspiracy, weapons charges, and providing material support to terrorists. Yassin Aref, a Kurdish refugee (in the U.S. as part of a United Nations refugee program) and an imam at a local mosque, was found guilty on 10 of 30 counts including the conspiracy charges and lying to federal authorities about his past political affiliations. Neither was convicted of being an actual terrorist but both were portrayed as having a supportive mindset.

The charges resulted from an FBI sting where an undercover officer posed as a radical Islamist and arms dealer who planned to sell a missile launcher to terrorists plotting an attack in New York City. The investigation started when Aref's name was found in Iraq at a destroyed terrorist camp.