Trial News

Dutch Citizen Arraigned In Washington, D.C., On Charges Of Terrorism Conspiracy Against Americans In Iraq

An Iraqi-born Dutch citizen who was extradited from the Netherlands on Saturday made his initial appearance today in federal court in Washington, D.C., to face charges for allegedly participating in a conspiracy to attack Americans based in Iraq, announced Kenneth L. Wainstein, Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division, Jeffrey A. Taylor, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Joseph Persichini Jr., Assistant Director in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Washington Field Office.

This case represents the first U.S. criminal prosecution arising from terrorist activities taking place in Iraq.

Wesam Al Delaema, a/k/a Wesam Khalaf Chayed Delaeme, was indicted by a grand jury in the District of Columbia in September 2005 and charged with six counts: conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens abroad; conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction (explosives); conspiracy to maliciously damage or destroy U.S. government property by means of an explosive; possession of a destructive device (explosives) during a crime of violence; conspiracy to possess a destructive device (explosives) during a crime of violence; and teaching or demonstrating the making or use of an explosive with the intent to further a crime of violence.

The indictment alleges that Delaema traveled from the Netherlands to Iraq in October 2003 and, together with a group of co-conspirators calling themselves the “Mujahideen from Fallujah,” declared his intentions to kill Americans in Iraq using explosives. The indictment further alleges that Delaema and his co-conspirators hid explosives in a road in the area of Fallujah, Iraq. Read more at washingtondc.fbi.gov.

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