S.A. man accused in jihad plot says he won’t take deal
A San Antonio man charged with conspiracy to help jihad fighters in Syria rejected a plea offer from the government Thursday that would have capped any prison sentence he got at eight years so long as he cooperated with the feds.
Imad Eddin Wadi, 64, was indicted in June on a charge of conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim or injure people and damage property in another country, which carries a sentence of up to life in prison. He is also charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization, punishable by up to 20 years.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Roomberg told U.S. District Judge Fred Biery that his office made an offer that Wadi plead guilty to a separate count of providing material support to terrorists, which normally carries a maximum of 15 years in prison. The deal was crafted with “a cap of eight years based on his cooperation in regard to another matter.”
Biery asked Wadi if he understood that he possibly faced less time under a plea deal than if he went to trial, tentatively scheduled for June.
“I understand the offer, and I reject it completely,” Wadi answered.
Wadi maintains his innocence, and his public defender has argued that his words were distorted by federal agents.
The FBI'S Joint Terrorism Task Force arrested Wadi in June as part of an investigation targeting activity between March 2017 and June 2019.
An indictment alleges Wadi and an unnamed suspect in Colombia talked about plans to find a wealthy investor to fund an export business Wadi runs in San Antonio. An undercover
law enforcement officer and a confidential source witnessed the discussion.
The suspects agreed to use a percentage of the funds and profits from the business to conceal, launder and funnel funds for weapons to fighters overseas affiliated with the socalled al-nusra Front to “murder and maim individuals in Syria.” The indictment does not identify the business but said Wadi traveled to South America.
The al-nusra Front began as a group of extremists fighting the Syrian regime in that country’s civil war. In a video, the group said it was behind several suicide bombings that have rocked Syria since an uprising began in March 2011.
Policy experts said the group is aligned with alqaida and sought to establish an Islamic state in Syria. The group has changed its name several times and merged with and separated from other groups.
The indictment lists vague references to discussions and information Wadi and the suspect in Colombia shared with the government informant and the undercover agent. The conversations center on reports of fighters in Syria shooting down helicopters, beheadings and strikes on other interests of the regime.
In one conversation in January 2019, Wadi allegedly talked about daily reports that the unnamed suspect got from front-line fighters, including how many people they killed.
“You feel the ecstasy of jihad when you talk to them,” Wadi allegedly said, according to the indictment.
He added that investments in his company would be used to buy rifles, grenades, rockets and remote-controlled aircraft capable of carrying 50 kilograms, or 110 pounds, of explosives, the indictment said.
In another incident in June 2019, the unnamed suspect forwarded the informant a conversation he had with a front-line fighter who described the fight against the regime and used descriptions such as “slaughtering them like dogs.”
While the indictment does not identify the business, public records link Wadi to businesses with ties to San Antonio and Colombia, including South America Export & Investments and its version in Colombia, South America Export and Investments SAS.
Wadi also is linked to Habbiba International Food Export S.A.S. in Bogotá. In an internet posting, that company said its operators have had business interests in Texas since 1985, starting with construction.