Bangladeshi youth Kazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis, being held in a US prison, has told the judge in a letter that “it was a big mistake” to try to blow up the US Federal Reserve building.
He wrote to the judge with judgment day approaching that his problem of stammering while a child, inability to do well in studies, failing to succeed in the US where he had come to try his fortunes, and being cheated by someone he loved had pushed him towards terrorism, although, he claimed, he was no believer in Islamic militancy.
The New York Daily News has published a copy of the letter Nafis wrote to the New York Federal Court judge Carol Amon on Jul 31.
In his dramatic letter, Nafis wrote that after learning that his girlfriend was cheating on him “I felt like the whole sky fell down over my head”. He felt there was no place for him in this world, and there was no meaning in living any more.
He has said that he could have committed suicide but did not do so because it was forbidden by Islam.
In the letter he repented for his action and sought forgiveness.
He went to the US on a student visa and took admission in a south-east Missouri university. But without completing the cyber security course he had enrolled in, Nafis switched to a technical college in New York.
The news of his arrest in October had created a stir in the media worldwide. The New York police and the FBI said they had arrested Nafis on Oct 17 after staging what they called a ‘sting operation’.
The Bangladeshi youth was accused of trying to blow up the Federal Reserve building with 1,000 pounds of explosives packed in a van, but they failed to go off as the stuff was not genuine.
On Nov 15, the grand jury endorsed the charges brought against him by the procetors. He was charged with trying to trigger devastation with explosives and firearms, and helping a terrorist organisation. His trial began after the charges were framed.
On Feb 7, he admitted to his crime, saying he wanted to shake the economic base of the United States. With that in mind, he planned to blow up the Federal Reserve building with the help of an explosives-laden van.
Nafis told the court that he had become a follower of former al Quader leader Osama bin Laden before he came to the US and had committed himself to carrying out terrorist strikes. But, he said, he now realised that it was not right to kill innocent people in the name of Jihad.
The judge told him that he could face up to 30 years in prison and a fine of US$150,000 (Tk 200,00,000) for his crime and would lose the option of appeal if he admitted to it.
But Nafis said he was admitting guilt despite being aware of the consequences.
The judge then fixed Aug 9 as the day for the judgment in this trial.
His family back in Dhaka had alleged that Nafis had been the victim of a conspiracy after the FBI arrested him.
Source: Bd news24
