New York: An Indian was among two persons charged here with attempting to provide material support to Lebanon's Hazbollah, a designated foreign terrorist group and for illegally possessing fire arms and ammunition.
The Indian national identified as Patrick Nayyar, 46, was residing illegally in Queens, New York and was arrested on September 24 from his residence based on a criminal complaint charging him with possessing a firearm and ammunition as an illegal alien.
According to the indictment filed yesterday in Manhattan federal court and the criminal complaint unsealed on September 24, between July 2009 and September 2009, Nayyar along with his accomplice Conrad Stanisclaus Mulholland agreed to provide weapons, ammunition and vehicles to Hezbollah.
During a series of meetings with a confidential informant working with the FBI, who represented himself as working for Hezbollah, Nayyar and Mulholland agreed to sell guns, ammunition, vehicles, bulletproof vests and night vision goggles to the confidential informant.
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Readers' comments:
Patrick Nayyar has been in the US for the last 24 years looking after his parents. His father, who was ailing for a long time, passed away last May. Nayyar is married in America with two children who he is looking after rather well.
He was a super dad and did his maintenance work of the buildings and graduated to construction by restoring buildings condemned by the city department to the utmost satisfaction and safety norms required.
He has worked his way up with sheer honesty and integrity always helping people (once published in The Daily News, Hailed As A Hero, in 2007 while he rescued a woman in a dispute with a cab driver.)
His record will show that he has never been a felon case which itself goes to prove his clean living and that he is a born-again Pentecostal Christian.
From the above it is quite evident that the FBI has a case of mistaken identity as Mr Nayyar was associated through his construction work with Mr Ali and is in no way involved with guns, ammunition, and the like or any other illegal activities as suggested.
Having said that, it may be repeated that the FBI has made a grave blunder and request that an in-depth investigation is conducted in the matter to apprehend the real culprits if any and release Mr Nayyar from his predicament to allow him and his family to lead a normal, free life for which America is known for freedom and justice.
Mr Ali, who happened to be an FBI informant, was at one point of time himself in trouble with the law. He threatened Mr Nayyar with dire consequences resulting from a dispute while Mr Nayyar was doing construction work for him three years ago. Mr Ali's threat did not work and he changed his strategy and befriended Mr Nayyar to implicate him with the FBI for which Mr Ali was an informer, which he became after he was apprehended. In doing so, he satisfied his grudge and made the FBI believe it had a catch.
This case is evidently simple. Mr Ali's revenge and the FBI falling for a white herring.
It is not expected of the FBI, a respected and reputed organization, to frame false charges when it is aware of the mistake made. It should appeal to its conscience and to the oath its personnel swore by to set the record right, as well 'as the charges contained in the complainant and the indictment are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. Mr Nayyar should be set free till proven guilty towards which there is not one iota of evidence.
Monday, November 2, 2009 0:06 IST
Charles, kolkata
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