Boston - Federal prosecutors on Tuesday
said a Massachusetts man accused of plotting to attack police
and behead a conservative blogger was a passionate supporter of
the Islamic State militant group who recruited people including
his own uncle into the scheme.
The prosecutors contend that David Wright, 28, along with
his uncle and a friend had plotted to kill the blogger, a woman
who organized a 2015 "Draw Mohammed" contest in Garland, Texas.
They said the plan unraveled when the uncle, Usamaah Abdullah
Rahim, lost patience and said he wanted to kill police officers
instead.
"The defendant was a sophisticated recruiter, he manipulated
people, including his own uncle, into believing that they needed
to join ISIS and kill Americans," said Assistant U.S. Attorney
Stephanie Siegmann, using a common acronym to refer to Islamic
State.
"The defendant was committed to ISIS and he knew exactly
what he was doing," Siegmann said in prosecutors' closing
statements at Wright's trial in Boston federal court.
The three bought knives and planned to travel to New York to
kill Pamela Geller, the organizer of the "Draw Mohammed"
contest. That plan fell apart in June 2015 when Rahim told
Wright he had lost patience and planned to attack police in
Boston.
Law enforcement, who had been surveilling the group,
overheard the conversation. When police approached Rahim to
question him, he pulled a knife and was shot dead by officers.
Defense attorney Jessica Diane Hedges said that Rahim's
actions were a surprise to Wright. The defendant took the rare
step of testifying in his own defense, saying he had never
really intended to attack Geller. He described his actions as
"role playing."
Hedges noted that even law enforcement was surprised by
Rahim's attack.
"They weren’t planning on arresting Mr. Wright until Usamaah
Rahim did something," she said. "What the government has done in
this case over and over is exploit the fear that ISIS inspires."
If Wright is found guilty of the charge of conspiracy to
commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries, he
could face a life sentence.
Geller had organized the Texas event in May 2015 featuring
cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, images that many Muslims
consider blasphemous. Two gunmen had attacked that event and
were shot dead by police.
Geller contends her event was intended as a demonstration of
the free-speech rights protected by the First Amendment of the
U.S. Constitution.