Four men accused of planning attacks on Israeli Consulate, Jewish buildings.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFjcc 88(photo credit: )
A judge has set an Oct. 24, 2006, trial date for four men accused of plotting terrorist attacks on military facilities and synagogues in the United States, prosecutors said.
Levar Haley Washington, 25, Gregory Vernon Patterson, 21, Hammad Riaz Samana, 21, and Kevin James, 29, have been accused of conspiring to wage war against the US government through terrorism, kill armed service members and murder foreign officials.
All but Samana, a Pakistani national, are American-born and Muslim converts.
Prosecutors contend the plot was orchestrated by Washington, Patterson and Hammad Riaz Samana, 21, at the behest of Kevin James, an inmate of the California State Prison, Sacramento. James, 29, founded the radical group Jamiyyat Ul-Islam Is-Saheeh, or JIS.
Washington converted to Islam while imprisoned at the same facility for a robbery conviction.
Washington and Patterson pleaded not guilty last month to the federal charges alleging they planned terrorist attacks against military facilities, the Israeli Consulate and other targets in the Los Angeles area.
During that hearing, Assistant US Attorney Kevin Smith called Washington and Patterson dangers to society and flight risks, saying they had planned to carry out a 'homegrown jihad' against the United States.
Levar Haley Washington, 25, and Gregory Vernon Patterson, 21, were ordered held without bail after their pleas in US District Court.
Police uncovered the alleged plot in July while investigating a string of gas station robberies. They found what they believe was a target list that included three California National Guard facilities, the Israeli Consulate in Los Angeles and several synagogues.
Washington, Patterson and Samana - who attended the same Inglewood mosque - allegedly conducted surveillance of military sites, synagogues, the Israeli Consulate and El Al airline facilities in the Los Angeles area.
Prosecutors suspect that the three robbed gas stations to finance their plans. Patterson bought a rifle and Samana received 'firearms training and physical training,' according to the indictment.
