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Violators will face legal action and possibly a firearm.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Zazi indicted for conspiracy to use WMD
Najibullah Zazi, the Denver man believed to be the central figure in a terror plot against the New York City transit system, has officially been indicted on charges of conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction against persons or property in the United States.
A federal grand jury in Brooklyn returned a one-count indictment that between Aug. 1, 2008 and Sept. 21, 2009, Najibullah Zazi knowingly and intentionally conspired with others to use one or more weapons od mass destruction, specifically explosive bombs and other similar explosive devices, against persons or property within the United States.
The indictment also states that Zazi and others traveled in interstate and foreign commerce, used e-mail and the Internet, and that this offense and the results of the offense would have affected interstate and foreign commerce.
Zazi could face life in prison.
Afghan immigrant Najibullah Zazi was helped by associates who traveled to Colorado to buy bomb supplies with stolen credit cards, according to law enforcement.
"Associates of Najibullah Zazi visited Colorado from New York to help Zazi buy the chemicals, said a senior law enforcement official involved in the investigation. "They used stolen credit cards to make the purchases and then returned to New York."
Court documents show that Zazi and others bought large quantities of hydrogen peroxide and acetone from beauty supply stores in July and August.
Najibullah Zazi, a Denver International Airport shuttle bus driver, received training from al Qaeda in Pakistan, according to documents.
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"Zazi received detail bomb making instructions in Pakistan, purchased components of improvised explosive devices, and traveled to New York City on Sept. 10, 2009 in furtherance of his criminal plans." MORE
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Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Denver al Qaeda cell arrested
The FBI arrested Najibullah Zazi, 24, and his father Mohammed, 53, at their Aurora apartment at about 9:40 p.m. Saturday for their involvement in the 9-11 style terrorist plot against the United States.
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The FBI also arrested 37-year-old Ahmad Afzali in New York City Saturday night. All there were arrested for making a false statement. The charge carries a maximum of eight years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to an arrest affidavit, Zazi drove a rental car from Colorado on Sept. 9, arriving in New York on Sept. 10. Zazi left his laptop computer and paperwork in the rental car when he turned in the vehicle.
Zazi's laptop computer contained nine-pages of handwritten notes of formulations and instructions regarding the manufacture and handling of initiating explosives, explosives charges, explosives detonators and components of a fuzing system.
Zazi told the FBI that he had never seen the document before and must have unintentionally downloaded the document as part of a religious book, which he says he later deleted because it contained talk of jihad.
Handwriting on the notes matches his handwriting. Handwriting analysts have confirmed that there are characteristics in common between the notes and with writing samples submitted by Zazi.
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The document was sent between three e-mail accounts in early December 2008. The FBI has strong evidence that the e-mail accounts belong to Zazi. Two of the e-mail accounts had the same nine-digit password, and the third e-mail account had a six-digit password matching the first six digits of the nine-digit password belonging to Zazi.
Zazi kept footage of New York's Grand Central Station at his apartment in Aurora, an east suburb of Denver. He had nine knapsacks. FBI agents are conducting round-the-clock surveillance on five suspects. FBI agents have conducted raids on several Queens, New York apartments. MORE
Brian Blackwell
QI Investigations
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Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Perjury Case May Reopen In Tim Masters Case
Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck may take a second look at a perjury investigation he closed last summer against Fort Collins police Lt. Jim Broderick involved in wrongdoing in the case of Timothy Masters, who was freed last year after spending nearly ten years in prison.
"We're going to look at new documents, and we're going to re-examine the evidence we had before and make a determination on whether we'll reopen the investigation." Buck said Friday.
Masters spent nearly 10 years in prison for the 1987 murder of Peggy Hettrick. His conviction was overturned last year after DNA evidence found on Hettrick's body did not match Masters'.
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| Tim Masters |
Masters now lives in Greeley, but keeps to himself, says Maria Liu, the main attorney who helped secure Masters' new trial and his subsequent exoneration.
At the time of the murder, Masters was 15, and prosecutors concentrated on him based solely on his doodles and sketches and the fact that he had walked by the body and did not report it to police. Masters had said he thought it was a mannequin.
Broderick testified during Masters' trial that he wasn't involved in the investigation of Masters between mid-1987 and 1992. But e-mails released as part of Masters' lawsuit against police show Broderick was involved in the Masters case.
E-mails from 1989 show Broderick planning out the surveillance of Masters on the second anniversary of Hettrick's murder.
"The plan is to pick Masters up from school and keep on him until we put him to bed at night," Broderick wrote in an e-mail. Other portions of e-mails, written by another police officer informed staff to Broderick's equipment requests for the surveillance, noting that it was "a worthwhile last ditch effort to catch Tim if we can."
These e-mails were not provided to Buck as part of his initial investigation of Broderick.
In Buck's initial investigation, while clearing Broderick, he noted irregularities in evidence gathering and reporting, but nothing criminal.
Brian Blackwell
Other Sources:
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Cheba Hut wins right to marijuana theme
Weld County, Colo. judge says sandwich shop has right to use marijuana theme
Greeley, Colorado - Weld County judge Daniel Maus late Tuesday overturned a Greeley judge's decision to deny Cheba Hut's liquor license last spring. Maus cited owner Scott Jennings' First Amendment right to market his business how he wanted, which had no bearing on whether he should be able to sell liquor.
"While the licensing authority may note the First Amendment in its finding and decision, it apparently has little regard for it," Maus wrote in his ruling. "Plaintiff is well within its constitutional right of free speech to use terms that reference marijuana in its marketing strategy, decor, naming of sandwiches, and the like."
"The licensing authority punished plaintiff for exercising his First Amendment rights while at the same time acknowledging that plaintiff had such rights," Maus wrote.
The ruling reversed Cheba Hut's liquor license denial. Cheba Hut will not have to reapply for its license. The cityof Greeley has 45 days to appeal the ruling.
Cheba Hut at 1645 8th Ave., opened in April across the street from the University of Northern Colorado with a complete bar inside.
Municipal judge Robert Frick denied Cheba Hut's liquor license because of its marijuana theme, including 25 sandwiches with names of marijuana strains.
Jennings started Cheba Hut in 1998 in Arizona while was a communications student. He has since opened locations and franchised the stores throughout Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. He recently formed a deal with franchisers in Oregon and planning to meet soon with potential franchisers in California.
In August, a Fort Collins municipal judge granted one of Jennings' two Fort Collins Cheba Hut shops a liquor license.
Jennings says he lost about $40,000 in sales since he opened in Greeley. To fight Frick's ruling, he says he's spent about $5,000 in legal bills.
In his ruling, Maus said Frick's decision was "arbitrary and capricious" because Frick considered information that was not pertinent according to the law, including potential future problems related to marijuana use on campus.
"While an increased trend" in marijuana use and offenses has been alleged, this court gives no weight to the argument that such a trend is connected to the existence of local businesses such as plaintiff," Maus wrote. "This court is wholly unpersuaded that plaintiff's marketing strategy or use of marijuana terminology would cause an otherwise law abiding citizen to engage in the use of marijuana."
"Even if the increasing trend in marijuana use could be blamed on a sandwich shop, the licensing authority may not justify the denial of a liquor license on the suspicion of future problems or illegal activity."
Jennings' attorney Maria Liu said at the time of the appeal that she felt Frick denied Cheba Hut's liquor license based on his emotions and opinion. She said she was proud that Maus followed and applied the law. Liu says she hopes the city of Greeley doesn't push the matter further.
Greeley Tribune
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Greeley, Colorado - Weld County judge Daniel Maus late Tuesday overturned a Greeley judge's decision to deny Cheba Hut's liquor license last spring. Maus cited owner Scott Jennings' First Amendment right to market his business how he wanted, which had no bearing on whether he should be able to sell liquor.
"While the licensing authority may note the First Amendment in its finding and decision, it apparently has little regard for it," Maus wrote in his ruling. "Plaintiff is well within its constitutional right of free speech to use terms that reference marijuana in its marketing strategy, decor, naming of sandwiches, and the like."
"The licensing authority punished plaintiff for exercising his First Amendment rights while at the same time acknowledging that plaintiff had such rights," Maus wrote.
The ruling reversed Cheba Hut's liquor license denial. Cheba Hut will not have to reapply for its license. The cityof Greeley has 45 days to appeal the ruling.
Cheba Hut at 1645 8th Ave., opened in April across the street from the University of Northern Colorado with a complete bar inside.
Municipal judge Robert Frick denied Cheba Hut's liquor license because of its marijuana theme, including 25 sandwiches with names of marijuana strains.
Jennings started Cheba Hut in 1998 in Arizona while was a communications student. He has since opened locations and franchised the stores throughout Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. He recently formed a deal with franchisers in Oregon and planning to meet soon with potential franchisers in California.
In August, a Fort Collins municipal judge granted one of Jennings' two Fort Collins Cheba Hut shops a liquor license.
Jennings says he lost about $40,000 in sales since he opened in Greeley. To fight Frick's ruling, he says he's spent about $5,000 in legal bills.
In his ruling, Maus said Frick's decision was "arbitrary and capricious" because Frick considered information that was not pertinent according to the law, including potential future problems related to marijuana use on campus.
"While an increased trend" in marijuana use and offenses has been alleged, this court gives no weight to the argument that such a trend is connected to the existence of local businesses such as plaintiff," Maus wrote. "This court is wholly unpersuaded that plaintiff's marketing strategy or use of marijuana terminology would cause an otherwise law abiding citizen to engage in the use of marijuana."
"Even if the increasing trend in marijuana use could be blamed on a sandwich shop, the licensing authority may not justify the denial of a liquor license on the suspicion of future problems or illegal activity."
Jennings' attorney Maria Liu said at the time of the appeal that she felt Frick denied Cheba Hut's liquor license based on his emotions and opinion. She said she was proud that Maus followed and applied the law. Liu says she hopes the city of Greeley doesn't push the matter further.
Greeley Tribune
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