Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Bangladeshi Immigrant Convicted in NYC Subway Bombing
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
November 6, 2018

Share

Mug shot of Akayed Ullah
(New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission via AP, File)

NEW YORK — A Bangladeshi immigrant convicted Tuesday of terrorism charges after setting off a pipe bomb in New York City’s busiest subway station at rush hour told the trial judge he was angry at President Donald Trump and didn’t carry out the attack for the Islamic State group.

“I was angry with Donald Trump because he says he will bomb the Middle East and then he will protect his nation.” — Akayed Ullah

The verdict against Akayed Ullah was returned in Manhattan federal court after a trial in which the defense maintained that he intended to kill only himself last Dec. 11. Nobody died, and most of the injuries were not serious.

After the verdict was announced and the jury left the room, Ullah spoke out, telling the judge: “I was angry with Donald Trump because he says he will bomb the Middle East and then he will protect his nation.”

Judge Richard Sullivan told him: “Right now is not the time for a statement.”

Ullah repeatedly told Sullivan he did not carry out the attack for the Islamic State group.

Sentencing was scheduled for April 5, when Ullah faces a mandatory 30-year prison sentence and could be sent to prison for life.

He Wanted to Maim or Kill Commuters

Prosecutors said he wanted to maim or kill commuters as part of a “lone wolf” terrorist attack on behalf of the terrorist organization. They disputed the defense claim, saying Ullah would not have worn a bomb had he wanted to kill only himself. They also cited social media postings by Ullah, as well as comments he made after his arrest to investigators.

The verdict capped a weeklong trial that featured surveillance video of Ullah the morning when his pipe bomb sputtered, seriously burning him in a corridor beneath Times Square and the Port Authority bus terminal, where most subway lines converge.

At trial, Ullah was confronted with his post-arrest statements and his social media comments, such as when he taunted Trump on Facebook before the attack. The president later demanded tightened immigration rules.

Authorities said Ullah’s radicalization began in 2014 when he started viewing materials online, including a video instructing Islamic State supporters to carry out attacks in their homelands.

In closing arguments Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney George Turner said Ullah told investigators after his arrest that he wanted to avenge U.S. aggression toward the Islamic State group and had chosen a busy weekday morning to attack so he could terrorize as many people as possible.

Ullah Followed the Propaganda of the Islamic State

The prosecutor said Ullah, 28, of Brooklyn, followed the propaganda of the Islamic State group online and wanted to follow its instructions to carry out a “lone wolf” terror attack on Americans.

“His goal was to injure and kill innocent civilians, to terrorize.”Assistant U.S. Attorney George Turner

“His goal was to injure and kill innocent civilians, to terrorize,” Turner said.

The prosecutor said Ullah told an investigator after his arrest: “I did it for the Islamic State.”

Gallicchio, though, said Ullah purposefully chose an isolated corridor to set off his bomb because he only wanted to commit suicide.

“This is not a terrorist attack,” she argued.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn Crowley disputed the claim.

“It was about martyrdom, not suicide,” she said.

DON'T MISS

Baseball’s Newest Hall of Famers: Suzuki, Sabathia, Wagner

DON'T MISS

‘Once in a Lifetime’ Snow Hits Parts of the US South

DON'T MISS

Trump Temporarily Halts Leasing and Permitting for Wind Energy Projects

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Who Dealt Deadly Fentanyl Pill Gets 80-Month Prison Term

DON'T MISS

What’s Next for EVs as Trump Moves to Revoke Biden-Era Incentives?

DON'T MISS

US Throws out Policies Limiting Arrests of Migrants at Sensitive Locations like Schools, Churches

DON'T MISS

Visalia Police Find Man Shot Near Shopping Center. Tips Sought.

DON'T MISS

Convicted Jan. 6 Rioter Benjamin Martin Still Going to Prison

DON'T MISS

Is Lawsuit on Planned Reedley Job Center a ‘Shakedown’?

DON'T MISS

Much of the Damage from the LA Fires Could Have Been Averted

UP NEXT

Israel’s Top General Resigns over Oct. 7 Failures, Adding to Pressure on Netanyahu

UP NEXT

Musk’s Straight-Arm Gesture Embraced by Right-Wing Extremists

UP NEXT

Facing Setbacks and Desertions at the Front, Ukraine Detains Commanders

UP NEXT

Palestinians Confront a Landscape of Destruction in Gaza’s ‘Ghost Towns’

UP NEXT

Trump’s Executive Orders: Reversing Biden’s Policies

UP NEXT

Canada Relieved Trump Doesn’t Impose Tariffs on the Major US Trading Partner on First Day

UP NEXT

Ceasefire: Hamas Returns 3 Israeli Hostages, Israel Frees 90 Palestinian Prisoners

UP NEXT

Trump Returns to Power After Unprecedented Comeback, Emboldened to Reshape US

UP NEXT

Trump to Release Records on the Assassinations of the Kennedys and Martin Luther King

UP NEXT

Walmart Breaks into Luxury Resale Market, Will Offer Chanel, Fendi, Prada, Other Brands

Fresno Man Who Dealt Deadly Fentanyl Pill Gets 80-Month Prison Term

2 hours ago

What’s Next for EVs as Trump Moves to Revoke Biden-Era Incentives?

2 hours ago

US Throws out Policies Limiting Arrests of Migrants at Sensitive Locations like Schools, Churches

3 hours ago

Visalia Police Find Man Shot Near Shopping Center. Tips Sought.

3 hours ago

Convicted Jan. 6 Rioter Benjamin Martin Still Going to Prison

3 hours ago

Is Lawsuit on Planned Reedley Job Center a ‘Shakedown’?

4 hours ago

Much of the Damage from the LA Fires Could Have Been Averted

5 hours ago

CA Sued the Tar Out of Trump the First Time Around. How Did It Do?

6 hours ago

Israel’s Top General Resigns over Oct. 7 Failures, Adding to Pressure on Netanyahu

6 hours ago

Musk’s Straight-Arm Gesture Embraced by Right-Wing Extremists

6 hours ago

Baseball’s Newest Hall of Famers: Suzuki, Sabathia, Wagner

NEW YORK — Ichiro Suzuki became the first Japanese player chosen for baseball’s Hall of Fame, falling one vote shy of unanimous when he was ...

2 hours ago

Ichiro Suzuki in Yankee Pinstripes
2 hours ago

Baseball’s Newest Hall of Famers: Suzuki, Sabathia, Wagner

People walk past the 1900 Storm memorial sculpture on Seawall Blvd. during an icy winter storm on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025 in Galveston, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)
2 hours ago

‘Once in a Lifetime’ Snow Hits Parts of the US South

The five turbines of Block Island Wind Farm operate, Dec. 7, 2023, off the coast of Block Island, R.I., during a tour organized by Orsted. (AP File)
2 hours ago

Trump Temporarily Halts Leasing and Permitting for Wind Energy Projects

Photo of Mexican Oxy, fentanyl laced blue pills
2 hours ago

Fresno Man Who Dealt Deadly Fentanyl Pill Gets 80-Month Prison Term

President Donald Trump talks about the Endurance all-electric pickup truck, made in Lordstown, Ohio, at the White House, Sept. 28, 2020, in Washington. (AP File)
2 hours ago

What’s Next for EVs as Trump Moves to Revoke Biden-Era Incentives?

A Border Patrol truck rides along the border wall in Sunland Park, N.M., Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP/Andres Leighton)
3 hours ago

US Throws out Policies Limiting Arrests of Migrants at Sensitive Locations like Schools, Churches

Police are investigating after a man was found shot near a Visalia shopping center and transported to Kaweah Health.
3 hours ago

Visalia Police Find Man Shot Near Shopping Center. Tips Sought.

3 hours ago

Convicted Jan. 6 Rioter Benjamin Martin Still Going to Prison

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend