Abdulrahmanel Bahnasawy
| Abdulrahmanel Bahnasawy | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| 🏳️ Citizenship | Canadian |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| 🌐 Website | https://bringabdulhome.ca/ |
Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy is a mentally ill[3] Canadian citizen who was ‘vulnerable’ and minor with no history of violence or criminal record when was encouraged by an undercover FBI informant to do violence[4].El Bahnasawy was entrapped by the FBI with the help of RCMP knowingly of his mental illness but no officials had ever contacted the family[5][6]. El Bahnasawy was convicted for his role in an online chatting terror plot while he was a teenager but none of the attacks were carried out.[7]
In December 2018, El Bahnasawy was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison.
Early life[edit]
Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy is a Canadian citizen who was born in Kuwait in 1998. His family resided in Oakville, Ontario. Abdulrahman's father is an IT consultant and his mother is a University professor. Abdulrahman is a funny, friendly, down to earth, and loving person. He is known among his family and friends for his sense of humour, his genuine friendship and his care for others[8][9]. Abdulrahman has an extensive history of mental health problems and poor function, dating back to childhood,” according to a report by New York psychologist Katherine Porterfield, who reviewed El Bahnasawy’s medical files, met his family and spent 50 hours with him over nine months in 2017. “His most consistent trait was his tendency to fixate or obsess about certain topics or interests,” Porterfield wrote[10]. With the right help, El Bahnasawy’s road to recovery is wide open, according to various psychological assessments[11].
Growing up El Bahnasawy's teachers noted that he was hyperactive and had trouble focusing in school. Throughout El Bahnsawy's adolescent life, he struggled with issues related to his mental health and subsequent substance abuse. He was diagnosed with both major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. He was placed in three different mental health hospitals in Egypt, Kuwaiti Center of Psychiatric Health and the Center for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto, Ontario. The medication he was taking seemed to work but it made him gain weight , sleepy and he stopped taking it just before the entrapment waiting for a psychiatrist to change his medicine[12].
Family trip and arrest[edit]
El Bahnasawy was a 17-year-old living at his parents' home in Mississauga, west of Toronto, in late 2015 when he met an undercover FBI agent online. At the time, the teen had been diagnosed with a severe bipolar disorder and addiction problems. He had gone off his two mood-stabilizing and antipsychotic medications and was on a waiting list for further psychiatric care[13].Elbahnasawy had been influenced by the inflmatery messages of an undercover law enforcement with the help of RCMP in support of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization.At the time, both U.S. and Canadian security officials were aware of his long standing mental health problems[14][15].Moreover, In a statement to CBC News, the RCMP said that at no time was the safety or security of the public at risk during the investigation[16].
The holiday in New York was planned for the Victoria Day long weekend. His father said he felt it would be good for the family and there was reason to celebrate. After months of being turned away by psychiatrists who either did not treat bipolar disorder or weren’t taking new patients, they had finally found a doctor for their son. The appointment was set for the Tuesday after the long weekend. El Bahnasawy had also agreed to go back to school.They had no trouble crossing the border and saw nothing out of the ordinary on the drive. They got to the hotel in Cranford, New Jersey at about 10 p.m. and pulled into the parking lot[17]. El-Bahnasawy was arrested from his family car, days after his 18th birthday, in a hotel parking lot just before reaching the city, just three days away from a promising new medical intervention. Up until then, no officials had ever contacted the family about his online activities, even though authorities ( RCMP ) knew full well that El Bahnasawy had a severe history of mental illness. In fact, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police allegedly obtained the youth’s medical records unlawfully from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and handed them over to the FBI[18]. The family’s lawyer, Dennis Edney, argues the RCMP’s co-operation made it easier for American agents to manipulate Elbahnasawy deeper into a plot to commit terrorist acts in New York City’s Times Square. [19].
Elbahnasawy was charged with conspiracy to commit terror acts transcending national borders and providing material support to terror groups. Haroon and Salic were arrested in Pakistan and the Philippines, respectively. In 2020, a Pakistani Supreme Court decided to halt the United States extradition request of Haroon. Salic, a Philippian doctor is also yet to be extradited to the United States.
El Bahnasawy apologizes for his behaviour in his letter to the judge, writing, "I want to experience life away from drugs and away from war and violence." He wrote that he wondered where he would be if anyone who knew about his plans had encouraged him to find a more productive way to fight the injustice he saw in the world[20]
On December 19, 2018, El Bahnasawy was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison. The prosecution on the case had pushed for El Bahnasawy to be sentenced to life imprisonment. El Bahnasawy's mother apparently yelled "This is a sick boy! This is crazy. You have no justice," before being ushered out of the courtroom.
At the same time in Canada, B.C. Appeal Court says RCMP ‘manufactured’ terrorism plot against B.C. legislature. The Canadian couple John Nuttall and Amanda Korodconvicted of a terrorism plot set free after a judge ruled they had been entrapped in a police sting operation.A judge said police manipulated the couple into carrying out the attack as the pair did not have the mental capacity plan the attack on their own, the judge added[21].The increased arrests have led to pushback from civil liberties groups and accusations of entrapment.
The RCMP’s role is the subject of a complaint filed[edit]
The RCMP’s role is now the subject of a complaint filed with the recently formed National Security and Intelligence Review Agency as El Bahnasawy was “entrapped” by the FBI with the help of the RCMP, which was aware of his history of mental illness and addiction. The complaint alleges that Both agencies knew of his mental health problem and so entrapped him online, taking advantage of his unstable mental health, while he was manic and on the waiting list for mental health treatment. Experts said there was no reason to decline the case, which touches on sensitive topics such as international cooperation and terrorism investigations in which mental illness is a factor[22]
On the other hand, a 2014 report by Human Rights Watch documented a pattern at the FBI of “discriminatory investigations, often targeting particularly vulnerable individuals (including people with intellectual and mental disabilities and the indigent), in which the government — often acting through informants — is actively involved in developing the plot, persuading and sometimes pressuring the target to participate, and providing the resources to carry it out[23].
References[edit]
- ↑ "Mentally ill Canadian convicted in terror probe lands in U.S. super maximum security prison".
- ↑ "The "Consultation" Racket: A Report on the National Islamophobia Summit".
- ↑ "He plotted to bomb Times Square for ISIS. Records show he's mentally ill. Is he a terrorist?".
- ↑ "Undercover informant encouraged 'vulnerable' Canadian ISIS plotter, defence argues".
- ↑ "RCMP knew Canadian was treated at mental-health facility before entering U.S."
- ↑ "COVID-19 is latest twist in Canadian family's nightmare".
- ↑ "Mentally ill Canadian convicted in terror probe lands in U.S. supermaximum security prison".
- ↑ "Who is Abdulrahman?".
- ↑ "How a Canadian teen was caught in a FBI terrorism sting".
- ↑ "He plotted to bomb Times Square for ISIS. Records show he's mentally ill. Is he a terrorist?".
- ↑ "COVID-19 is latest twist in Canadian family's nightmare".
- ↑ "He plotted to bomb Times Square for ISIS. Records show he's mentally ill. Is he a terrorist?".
- ↑ "COVID-19 is latest twist in Canadian family's nightmare".
- ↑ "Undercover informant encouraged 'vulnerable' Canadian ISIS plotter, defence argues".
- ↑ "RCMP knew Canadian was treated at mental-health facility before entering U.S."
- ↑ "The RCMP said that at no time was the safety or security of the public at risk".
- ↑ "He plotted to bomb Times Square for ISIS. Records show he's mentally ill. Is he a terrorist?".
- ↑ "The FBI role in manufacturing terrorism".
- ↑ "Undercover informant encouraged 'vulnerable' Canadian ISIS plotter, defence argues".
- ↑ "Canadian who admitted to plotting terrorist attacks asks for 'second chance'".
- ↑ "Canadian couple freed in terrorism case over police entrapment".
- ↑ "National security review agency looking at complaint over arrest of Canadian ISIS recruit".
- ↑ "Human Rights Watch and Columbia Law School's Human Rights Institute said in a report".
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