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Statement from Tarek's family PDF Print E-mail
Thursday, 22 July 2010 12:58 PM

 

 

 

Let us begin by thanking all of you for your continued support for Tarek and your concern over the injustices that the government has perpetrated against him.  I would like to announce that, with respects to the goals we laid out for this hearing, July 20th was a great success for Tarek and his supporters!

Among the goals that we had, an important one was to ensure that supporters were able to fill the courtroom.  At the last hearing, we failed to anticipate a dirty tactic where the available seats were filled early on by reporters and FBI agents, so that when Tarek entered he only saw a handful of familiar faces.  This time, we had a much larger room to fill (20 benches compared to only 8 or so), and when Tarek walked in, 19 out of those 20 were filled with supporters.  The 20th bench was reserved for 3 FBI agents, and you can imagine how shocked they were to find themselves surrounded by a sea of our supporters!  When Tarek walked in and saw all of the people who had come to see him and lend their support, an ear-to-ear smile came across his face.  It was a beautiful thing to see!

There were roughly 150 people in the courtroom during the hearing.  Another 40 or so waited in the hall outside the room.  Another 30—50 people waited outside the entrance to the courthouse, executing a rally consisting of carefully designed signs and banners, and chanting “Free Tarek!”  The media was present, and supporters were free to make statements to them, although myself and my parents declined to do so, on the legal team’s request.  In total, roughly 300 people were involved in our overall effort—50% more than in the previous hearing.  We are steadily gaining momentum, and our presence is growing stronger.

During the hearing, Tarek’s body language and his voice both showed very clearly that he still has very strong spirit.  He was not at all hunched over or weak-like.  His attitude was definitively one of confidence and resolve, and this could not be missed when he plead “NOT GUILTY” to the new charge that was brought against him some weeks earlier. For the sake of clarification, this hearing was a second indictment hearing due to the superseding charge that was announced weeks ago.  It is called ‘superseding’ because it was based on an already existing charge against Tarek, one which was basically reworded into a more specific false accusation against him.  With respects to how we organize and coordinate his defense, it makes no difference, however. It just replaces the previous wording of the same charge (as opposed to being an additional charge on top of the others).

Another important change is that the previous magistrate has been replaced now by Judge O’Toole.  O’Toole appears to be a far more experienced, competent, and confident judge than the previous magistrate.  According to Jay Carney Jr., Tarek’s attorney, it is to our benefit that O'Toole was the randomly selected official taking over Tarek’s case.

We are currently still in the ‘pre-trial’ stage of Tarek’s case.  Each case has 2 phases—the ‘pre-trial’ and the actual trial itself.  During the hearing, the date of Tarek’s trial was decided as October 3rd, 2011.  However, there is a lot that will happen between now and then.  While it is possible that Tarek might be let out on bail, there are certain things that his attorneys have to see to before we can have a better idea.

In the coming months, we have plans in place to become much more aggressive in reaching out to the American public, through allies and affiliates who are in positions of influence.  Americans must know that this is an issue of the First Amendment, not a terror case!  We encourage those who are confused to investigate the fact that despite the news media frenzy stories about a plan to shoot people at shopping malls, the formal charges against Tarek as addressed in the court’s affidavit fail to address any such rumors. More than simply puzzling, this reflects the effort of the FBI and its media allies to play on the ignorance of the public by spreading lies that they hope the public will not look into more deeply.

In addition, we have built strong bridges with the Islamic community in Worcester, where there are hundreds of people who have consistently expressed a desire to be given a more active role in defending Tarek and supporting him through our public efforts.  Ramadan will be a very busy time, and we have many events planned in advance.  It is long over-due for us to enlist Muslims in our effort.  I would remind everybody that these efforts are to the benefit of both Muslims and Americans.  It is both our duty and in our best interests as Muslims to support one of our own when he is unjustly accused; the reputation of the individual member reflects on that of the entire group. Whether Muslim or not, we must to strive to restore justice for those to whom it has been ruthlessly and unethically denied.  My family and I thank you all for your support, and the Support Committee urges you all to continue taking as active a role as possible in making progress towards this goal.  Free Tarek, and all those who share his experience!

 
Witness in terrorism case sentenced to probation? PDF Print E-mail
Thursday, 24 June 2010 9:34 PM

 

 

Here is an article from Boston Globe about the story of Charles Bilal Mccloud. Mccloud was a convicted felon with a long history of violence and drug abuse. The FBI approached this person and made him a deal, the same way they approached Tarek Mehanna. The difference between Mccloud and Tarek Mehanna is that Mccloud agreed to be an informant for a plea deal in which his offenses are dropped. Tarek Mehanna became a target of the FBI after he refused to be an informant and spy on his community.

A crucial witness in an FBI probe that led to terrorism charges against two Greater Boston men was rewarded for his cooperation yesterday with a sentence of probation for his own crime.

Read more...
 
Who is Tarek Mehanna? PDF Print E-mail
Monday, 26 October 2009 3:39 AM


Tarek Mehanna is a 27 year old American-born Muslim Egyptian. Highly educated, he holds a doctorate in pharmacy from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy. He is a devout, tolerant Muslim who is not only respected in the local Islamic and interfaith communities, but who also gives back to his community by fulfilling the roles of brother, educator, mentor, scholar, and friend. Tarek is described by those who know him well as humble, reserved, warm, peaceful, charismatic, knowledgeable, and dedicated.

For several years Tarek has been a victim of FBI surveillance and harassment. When Tarek refused to backstab the Mus lim community and be an informant for the FBI, they continually threatened him before taking an opportunity to arrest him in 2008. While Tarek was out on bail, FBI agents raided his home with an arrest warrant on October 21st, 2009.

Tarek was arrested again despite the lack of any new evidence since the prior apprehension. He is currently being held in solitary confinement, facing accusations of aiding and abetting terrorism. All of these FALSE charges have been fabricated by paid FBI informants. We ask you to join us to support our brother until he is released and home with his loving family.

In his own words:

Bismillah, was-Salama ‘alayki wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuh;

I will try to answer your questions as well as I can.

I was arrested at my house in the morning, on October 21st. I had just finished making wudu’ for Fajr prayer and was going into my room to pray sunnah when the doorbell rang, followed by a series of loud knocks. My father, who had just gotten dressed for work, was startled at first, but knew who it was. He opened the door, and my house was suddenly filled with about a dozen FBI agents coming up to my room. They were extremely disrespectful to my father as they addressed him. As my mother emerged from the bedroom, I motioned for them to join me in Fajr prayer despite the presence of the FBI agents. So, we stood there and prayed in my room with the agents looking on (maybe they learned a thing or two). I then hugged my parents before I was handcuffed and led down the stairs and out into a waiting police cruiser. I was told that after I was gone, my cat ran down to the door and sat there waiting for me to come back. Loyal animals, ma sha’Allah (awww….).

I was then taken to the local police station and booked, had a mugshot and fingerprints taken, and called home for a few minutes. It was still barely 7:00AM. It was easier to calm my mother down this time because we had been through all of this before around the same time last year.

(Click here to read the rest of Tariq’s letter)

 

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