From NJ to terror suspect in Yemen
Source: Agencies |
March 13, 2010, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
HE was raised in the state of New Jersey, where he was on the school wrestling team and earned a black belt in karate. Nearly a decade later, American Sharif Mobley is under arrest in Yemen, suspected of being an al-Qaida member and accused of killing a guard in an attempt to break out of a hospital.
While some acquaintances were startled by the news out of the Middle East on Thursday, a former classmate said that Mobley had strong religious views in high school, often trying to convert friends to Islam, and became increasingly radical, especially after they graduated in 2002.
Roman Castro, 25, who did a tour with the army in Iraq, said the last time he saw Mobley about four years ago, Mobley yelled: "Get the hell away from me, you Muslim killer!"
The FBI, the State Department and other authorities said they were trying to gather information about Mobley. But the allegations appeared to illustrate a phenomenon that United States intelligence officials have warned about: American Muslims are becoming radicalized and joining overseas terrorist movements.
Mobley, a 26-year-old natural-born US citizen, was identified by Yemeni officials as a Somali-American. Mobley moved to Yemen about two years ago, supposedly to learn Arabic and study Islam, a former neighbor said.
Before that, Mobley worked for several contractors at three nuclear power plants in New Jersey from 2002 to 2008, PSEG Nuclear spokesman Joe Delmar said. He was always supervised, caused no problems and was not believed to have breached security at the plants, said a New Jersey governor's office spokesman.
While some acquaintances were startled by the news out of the Middle East on Thursday, a former classmate said that Mobley had strong religious views in high school, often trying to convert friends to Islam, and became increasingly radical, especially after they graduated in 2002.
Roman Castro, 25, who did a tour with the army in Iraq, said the last time he saw Mobley about four years ago, Mobley yelled: "Get the hell away from me, you Muslim killer!"
The FBI, the State Department and other authorities said they were trying to gather information about Mobley. But the allegations appeared to illustrate a phenomenon that United States intelligence officials have warned about: American Muslims are becoming radicalized and joining overseas terrorist movements.
Mobley, a 26-year-old natural-born US citizen, was identified by Yemeni officials as a Somali-American. Mobley moved to Yemen about two years ago, supposedly to learn Arabic and study Islam, a former neighbor said.
Before that, Mobley worked for several contractors at three nuclear power plants in New Jersey from 2002 to 2008, PSEG Nuclear spokesman Joe Delmar said. He was always supervised, caused no problems and was not believed to have breached security at the plants, said a New Jersey governor's office spokesman.
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