Pro-ISIS Muslim cleric busted in native Jamaica for trying to recruit NYPD undercover cop
A notorious Muslim cleric with a history of terrorist recruitment was indicted after aiding an NYPD undercover’s effort to join ISIS, authorities announced Friday.
Shaikh Abdullah Faisal, previously convicted and jailed for preaching jihad in England, was busted in his homeland of Jamaica on five terrorism-linked charges, a law enforcement source said.
“Shaikh Faisal has used his influence and direction to groom and inspire terrorists who have bombed trains, attempted to blow up airliners and attack Americans here and abroad,” said NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.’s office brought the indictment against the 53-year-old suspect, who has publicly offered his support for ISIS.
“The way forward is not the ballot,” Faisal declared in one terrorist recruitment video. “The way forward is the bullet.”
Faisal, convicted and jailed in 2003 in England, reportedly played a part in the radicalization of shoe bomber Richard Reid and London’s 7/7 subway bomber Jermaine Lindsay.
He served four years in prison before he was deported to Jamaica.
In 2011, he was again deported to his homeland — this time from Kenya, where he was allegedly encouraging young fighters to join Islamic terrorists in Somalia.
The arrest came after an NYPD undercover established a relationship with the radical cleric via e-mail, text and video chats, according to authorities.
Faisal initially provided the undercover with ISIS propaganda before suggesting the cop travel to the Middle East to support the jihad, officials said.
When the cop volunteered that he was certified for CPR and first aid, Faisal made arrangements for the undercover to marry a woman in Syria for quicker access to the Middle East, officials said.
Faisal was taken into custody in Jamaica, and officials were waiting to see if he planned to fight extradition, according to the law enforcement source.
He could arrive in New York as early as next week, depending on whether he fights extradition.
Comments