A federal grand jury handed up new terrorism-related charges against a prominent New York defense lawyer and two others for their roles in an alleged conspiracy led by imprisoned Egyptian cleric Omar Abdel Rahman to kill and kidnap people abroad.
The Justice Department obtained the new indictment against attorney Lynne Stewart and an Arabic translator, who prosecutors accuse of helping Rahman communicate fatwas, or religious edicts, and other messages to Ahmed Abdel Sattar, a Staten Island postal worker. Sattar, a follower of the blind sheik, then allegedly circulated the messages to Rahman's followers around the world.
In July, a federal judge dismissed similar allegations against Stewart, who has represented a host of radical defendants, including leaders of the Weather Underground, and translator Mohammed Yousry. U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl branded as "vague" the government's allegations that they had used a telephone and fax machine in a conspiracy to provide "material support" to the Islamic Group, a terrorist organization that claimed responsibility for a 1997 attack that killed 58 tourists in Egypt.
Yesterday's indictment contains new details about the defendants' alleged conversations with Rahman and cites a different legal statute in alleging they conspired to provide material support for terrorist activity. The new indictment also charges that Sattar conspired with Rahman and others to kill and kidnap people abroad, and cites a "Fatwah Mandating the Killing of Israelis Everywhere" that Sattar posted on the Internet under Rahman's name.
Rahman is serving a life sentence for conspiring to blow up New York landmarks.
Stewart has maintained her innocence and has drawn support from some in the legal community who contend that the government was trying to limit a defendant's right to privileged communications with his lawyer. Neither Stewart nor her attorney returned phone calls seeking comment yesterday, and an attorney for Yousry could not be reached.
Kenneth Paul, an attorney for Sattar, said he was still reviewing the indictment but noted that "some of the old charges have resurfaced in a new fashion."
The allegations are the result of the government's secret taping of Rahman's conversations in a Minnesota prison after his 1995 conviction on charges he conspired to blow up New York landmarks, including involvement in the attack on the World Trade Center in 1993 and later plots to destroy the Lincoln and Holland tunnels.
Concerned that he was continuing to communicate with terrorist followers, government investigators obtained permission under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to tape Rahman's conversations with lawyers and translators.
In court papers yesterday, prosecutors alleged that during a May 2000 prison visit, Yousry told Rahman and Stewart about kidnappings by the Abu Sayyaf terrorist organization in the Philippines that were intended to force Rahman's release. Stewart allegedly replied, "Good for them."
Rahman has been subject to special restrictions on his communications intended to prevent him from running a terrorist organization from jail. Stewart, who pledged to comply with the restrictions, is also accused of making false statements for allegedly violating that promise. Prosecutors said that she actively concealed conversations from prison guards in which Rahman dictated letters to Yousry intended for his followers.
U.S. Attorney James B. Comey said his office sought the new charges after "a careful review of the court's July 22, 2003, ruling and a further reexamination of the evidence gathered against all three defendants in light of that ruling." He said the new charges "appropriately and adequately reflect the gravity of all three defendants' conduct and address the legal concerns articulated by the court in its July 22, 2003, ruling."
Stewart and Yousry are free on bond; Sattar remains in custody.
