Ex-Intel worker sentenced in terrorism case
A former Intel engineer who pleaded guilty to aiding terrorist organizations was sentenced Monday to seven years in prison.
Maher "Mike" Mofeid Hawash, a naturalized U.S. citizen, entered a guilty plea last August, admitting to traveling to China with five suspected terrorists and attempting to enter Afghanistan in order to fight against American military forces in 2001.
In addition to sentencing Hawash, U.S. District Judge Robert Jones in Portland, Ore., sentenced Ahmed Bilal to 10 years and Muhammad Bilal to eight years. Both were defendants in related cases that prosecutors said together represented a "Portland cell."
"Today's sentences demonstrate the serious consequences of attempting to assist our terrorist enemies in a time of war," Attorney General John Ashcroft said in a statement. "Thanks to the excellent cooperation of state and local law enforcement as well as the diligent work of the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, we were able to put those who would harm American soldiers behind bars."
