Officer Jesse Hartnett survived an ambush by a suspect who claimed he was inspired by ISIS, police said. Photo source: Philadelphia Police Department, via Twitter.
Philadelphia police officer Jesse Hartnett has miraculously survived a late-night ambush in which a man who allegedly claimed allegiance to ISIS fired at least 11 shots at him and reached inside the patrol car to fire.
The FBI and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security immediately became involved in the probe, Police Commissioner Richard Ross Jr. said. Hartnett, 33, a five-year veteran and former member of the Coast Guard, reportedly was hit at least three times at about 11:40 p.m. Thursday while in uniform and while operating a marked patrol car in West Philadelphia.
Hartnett, seriously wounded, still pursued his attacker and returned fire, Ross said. The commissioner called the attack “absolutely evil.”
The incident drew immediate comparisons to the horrifying and fatal ambush of two New York police officers in 2014. The New York attacks were dubbed assassinations, and Ross said Hartnett’s attacker tried to assassinate him.
“This alleged intentional act of violence against an officer seeking to help a fellow citizen is horrifying and has no place in Pennsylvania,” Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement.
BULLETIN: (2nd Update 1:58 p.m. ET U.S.A.) The FBI has arrested a man from Rochester, N.Y., saying he planned to show his support for ISIS by carrying out a machete attack today at a bar/restaurant in the Rochester area. ISIS is a terrorist group also known as ISIL.
Today is New Year’s Eve. Bars and restaurants will be packed, a circumstance that suggests the suspect wanted to maximize the terror he would create.
On Dec. 29, Emanuel L. Lutchman, 25, went shopping at a Walmart store on Hudson Ave. in Rochester to acquire the equipment needed for the bloody attack, including two black ski masks, zip-ties, two knives, a machete, duct tape, ammonia and latex gloves, according to a chilling FBI affidavit that outlined the plan.
Lutchman’s shopping companion, however, was an FBI informant, according to the affidavit.
Prior to his arrest yesterday, according to the affidavit, Lutchman swore his allegiance on video to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and claimed credit for the attack.
“The FBI thwarted Emanuel Lutchman’s intent to kill civilians on New Year’s Eve,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen of the Buffalo division. “The FBI remains concerned about people overseas who use the Internet to inspire people in the United States to commit acts of violence where they live.”
Lutchman allegedly told an FBI informant that he’d been in contact with an “Overseas Individual” who’d identified himself as an ISIS “brother.” This individual, according to the affidavit, allegedly told Lutchman that being with ISIS was “dream come true.”
Lutchman, in December, “expressed his hatred for everything in America” and the supposed infidels here and his desire to go to Syria to join ISIS, according to the affidavit.
Also in December, Lutchman talked about “doing assassinations” and using “firearms” and a “pressure-cooker bomb,” according to the affidavit.
“I am ready to lose my family” to live under the ISIS caliphate, Lutchman allegedly said. At one point, according to the affidavit, he pointed out the bar/restaurant as a potential attack target and said “he knew someone with a machete and that his wife has a dagger.”
The zip-ties were needed in case they “kidnap[ped] somebody,” Lutchman allegedly said.
After the Walmart shopping trip, Lutchman allegedly said, “It’s going to get real after this. “It’s just you, me and the Lord. We gotta do this, we gotta do this precise.”
Continuing, Lutchman allegedly said, “If we grab somebody, they can’t live. They may identify the vehicle. They can’t live.”
He has been charged with attempting to provide material support to ISIS.
“This New Year’s Eve prosecution underscores the threat of ISIL even in upstate New York but demonstrates our determination to immediately stop any who would cause harm in its name,” said U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. of the Western District of New York.
Rochester, in the western section of the state, has a population of about 210,000 and is New York’s third-largest city, behind New York City and Buffalo. Rochester is about the same size as San Bernardino, Calif., which was subjected to a terrorist attack on Dec. 2 that killed 14 people.
FundComing.com says it is a real-estate venture that pays 5,000 percent after three days and had helped victims of terrorism in Syria, one of the homes of ISIS,
Bitcoinest.net, a site that covers cryptocurrency news, reported today that “DoubleCloud.pw Is Another Bitcoin HYIP Ponzi Scheme.”
The “pw” extension stands for Palau, an island country in the Western Pacific. But the extension has been rebranded as “Professional Web,” according to Wikipedia. The user-created encyclopedia says Symantec, the security company, reported in 2013 a lot of “pw” spam.
The PP Blog today visited the DoubleCloud.pw website and observed an offer that advertises a “350% profit after 48 hours.” The Blog further visited the “Rules” page at the domain, which may be operating from Russia.
While at the domain, we copied this “rules” passage — “is not available to the general public and is opened only to the qualified members” — and pasted it into Google. Turns out the phrase appears on many, many sites, meaning it is part of a script in which the operators simply swap in the name of their particular swindle.
Perhaps of particular concern is that the phrase is on many sites that do not have a Bitcoin theme, meaning the kit is being used by scammers across the HYIP sphere.
One of them is known as FundComing.com, a purported real-estate venture that promises 5,000 percent after three days.
A note on the site clams as such (italics added):
“Today, we received a letter of thanks from investors [sic]. The investor comes from Syria, a 7 years [sic] old boy whose husband [sic] died from a terrorist attack. After the consent of her consent [sic], we put the letter of gratitude, the mood to share to you.”
Syria, of course, is one of the strongholds of ISIS. Based on the purported testimonial, the FundComing “real estate” website appears to be positioning itself as a safe venture for families shattered by terrorists. Meanwhile, it is using the same “rules” as DoubleCloud.pw, the purported Bitcoin earnings “program.”
Separately, a site styled Bond-dot.com is using the same “rules.” It says it is involved in both cryptocurrency and Forex from a purported base in “London (England).” It appears to be soliciting sums from $10 to $5,000, making it both a micro- and a macroscam.
Other sites with virtually the same “rules” — and this is just the tip of the iceberg:
RazInvest.com
NextPayMoney.com
NanoIncomes.com
HYIPFirst.com
NextHourPay.com
From the second page of Google search results for “is not available to the general public and is opened only to the qualified members.”
One of the knives: Source: Boston Police Department.
At 5 a.m. yesterday — two hours before he died in the Boston neighborhood of Roslindale — Usaamah Abdullah Rahim called David Wright of the Boston-area community of Everett, according to an FBI affidavit from a member of Boston’s Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Wright, 25, also is known as Dawud Sharif Wright and Dawud Sharif Abdul Khaliq, the office of U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz of the District of Massachusetts said.
During the 5 a.m. call, according to the FBI affidavit, 26-year-old Rahim told Wright he was going to “go after” the “boys in blue” and that he “planned to randomly kill police officers in Massachusetts either yesterday (June 2) or today (June 3).”
A little more than a year ago, while feting the Boston Red Sox at the White House for winning the 2013 World Series, Obama reminded the audience once again of the valor on display by police during the Marathon bombing. He noted that Officer Richard Donahue of the MBTA Transit Police was shot and nearly killed in a battle with the terrorists and was fighting back from his injuries.
Despite the Marathon attacks against innocent human beings — and despite the fact the police are the thin blue line that protects society — Rahim apparently wanted to kill Boston-area cops. And Wright, according to the FBI affidavit, apparently had so little regard for the lives of police officers that he instructed Rahim to wipe his smartphone and computer to make sure the plan was not detected.
Wright now has been charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice. A day earlier, in Roslindale at 7 a.m. outside a CVS pharmacy, Rahim allegedly approached cops and the FBI “while brandishing his weapon, and he was shot by law enforcement.”
There are reports that Rahim worked at the store as a security guard.
As alleged in the complaint affidavit, Rahim, a 26-year-old private security officer, was planning to engage in a violent attack in the United States, and had purchased three military-style fighting knives and a sharpener in furtherance of this plan. In intercepted calls between Wright and Rahim, the men discussed a knife attack on an individual not named in the complaint, and suggested that the target was to be beheaded and have his/her head placed on his/her chest. According to the complaint, such beheadings are a tactic of some foreign terrorist organizations which use such killings in propaganda videos.
The implication, of course, is that Rahim had been inspired by ISIS and/or the beheadings carried out by the terrorist group. America and other nations have been on guard for such gruesome aggression — and police are the first line of defense.
Before shifting focus to police, Rahim had talked about “beheading” a person in another state.
CNN is reporting tonight that the planned victim was conservative Blogger Pamela Geller.
As CNN reported: “Geller drew national attention last month after an off-duty police officer working security thwarted an attack at her organization’s contest for Prophet Mohammed drawings in Garland, Texas. She’s president of the American Freedom Defense Initiative, which includes subsidiary programs Stop Islamization of America and Stop Islamization of Nations.”
The probe also extends into Rhode Island, according to the FBI affidavit. That’s allegedly because Rahim met with Wright and an unidentified third person on a beach during “inclement weather.” The date of the meeting was May 31, just days after Rahim had acquired three knives on Amazon.com and a device to sharpen them.
Here’s how the affidavit describes the knives:
An Ontario Spec Plus Marine Raider Bowie fighting knife. “The Marine fighting knife Rahim purchased is 15 inches long when opened, contains a 9.75” blade, and weighs 22.4 ounces.”
A second Marine fighting knife.
An Ontario Knife SP6 Spec Plus Fighting Knife 8325. “The SP6 Spec Plus Fighting Knife Rahim purchased is 13 inches long and has an eight inch blade.”
Shortly after the 7 a.m. 5 a.m. (June 6 edit) conversation yesterday with Wright, according to the affidavit, “Rahim was on a public street in the Boston area, when he was approached by Boston Police Officers and FBI special agents. [Rahim] took out one of the knives he had purchased from Amazon.com when he saw the officers and agents. One of the officers told [Rahim] to drop his weapon and [Rahim] responded, ‘you drop yours.’
“[Rahim] then moved towards the officers while brandishing his weapon, and he was shot by law enforcement.”
Rahim also called Wright on May 26. This from the affidavit (italics added):
Later in the conversation, Wright told Rahim something was “like thinking with your head on your chest.” Both men then burst out laughing. Based upon my training, experience, and involvement in this investigation, I believe this is a reference to the practice of some foreign terrorist organizations to be head targets and place their heads on their chests in propaganda videos.”
Citing a generalized global terrorism threat, the United Kingdom’s Foreign Office says it is updating its travel advice and has asked U.K. travelers to be “vigilant.”
“There is considered to be a heightened threat of terrorist attack globally against UK interests and British nationals from groups or individuals motivated by the conflict in Iraq and Syria. You should be vigilant at this time.”
Put another way, if you are a Brit, ISIS or ISIS sympathizers may attack you on that basis alone.
The United Kingdom, like the United States, Canada and Australia, is a member of the military coalition arrayed against ISIS. Australian authorities have said ISIS or its sympathizers planned random attacks against members of the Australian public to demonstrate the reach of the terrorist group.
ISIS, also known as ISIL or the Islamic State, has beheaded Brits and Americans and appears to be inciting people from multiple nations to join ISIS campaigns in Iraq and Syria. ISIS also appears to be inciting nationals from multiple countries to make war against their own governments or own fellow citizens to broaden the terror.
On Oct. 30, federal prosecutors in North Carolina announced that Donald Ray Morgan, a 44-year-old local man from Rowan County, pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and possession of a firearm by a felon.
“Today’s plea is a sad reminder that those who wish to aid foreign terrorist organizations can come from any community and from any background,” said Ripley Rand, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina.
According to court documents, Morgan knowingly attempted to provide support and resources beginning in January 2014 until on or about Aug. 2, 2014, including his own services, to al-Qa’ida in Iraq, also known as Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization. On at least one occasion Morgan unsuccessfully attempted to travel from Lebanon to Syria to join ISIL/ISIS. Morgan also frequently used social media and an interview with an American journalist to express his support for ISIL/ISIS and violent terrorist activities.
A look at the agencies that participated in the Morgan probe shows that terrorism-related activities have become not only a concern for national agencies such as the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI, but also local agencies. Indeed, the names of the Greensboro Police Department, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office, the High Point Police Department and the Winston-Salem Police Department all appear in the Justice Department’s statement on the Morgan case. The local agencies are are members of Joint Terrorism Task Forces.
“We will continue to do everything we can to work effectively with our law enforcement partners and protect innocent people from terrorist activity, whether here in the United States or abroad,” Rand said.
“Preventing individuals from joining ISIL and holding accountable those who attempt to provide material support to the terrorist organization remains one of our highest priorities,” said John Carlin, assistant Attorney General for National Security.
In the United Kingdom, MailOnline, citing extracts from a U.N. study, is reporting concerns that “a new breed of terrorist was being attracted by the [ISIS] ‘cosmopolitan’ use of social media.”
The report suggests that terrorists could making war or inciting it in one moment — and posting “kitten photographs” on Twitter in the next.
In recent days, individuals have carried out alarming attacks against Canadian soldiers, the Canadian Parliament, New York City police officers and a police officer in Washington, D.C. The precise motives for the attacks and the degree to which mental-heath issues may have played a role are less than clear, which makes the overall circumstance murkier.
Weaponry has ranged from guns (Canada) to a hatchet (New York) to an ax (Washington).
The largest counter-terrorism campaign in Australia’s history reportedly is under way today, with officials saying one or more individuals with links to ISIS planned random attacks against members of the Australian public to demonstrate the reach of the terrorist group.
ISIS is associated with beheadings. Two American journalists and a British aid worker have been executed in this fashion by ISIS, which has taken over lands in Iraq and Syria.
Video circulating in Australian media today shows that police seized a sword.
Pre-dawn raids across Sydney and Brisbane led to the arrest of fifteen people and the reported seizure of a scimitar, a gun, machetes, balaclavas and military fatigues which authorities said were to be used in a plot to “shock, horrify and terrorise” the community.
“It is of serious concern that in the heart of our community there have been plans to conduct a random attack,” New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said. “We know there were plans on foot and we have been able to disrupt that.”
Fifteen people have been detained in relation to serious terrorism related offences during a major NSW Joint Counter Terrorism (JCTT) operation in Sydney today.
More than 800 officers from the AFP and NSW Police Force conducted 25 search warrants across Sydney this morning in the suburbs of Beecroft, Bellavista, Guildford, Merrylands, Northmead, Wentworthville, Marsfield, Westmead, Castle Hill, Revesby, Bass Hill and Regents Park.
Fifteen warrants have been undertaken at Sydney premises this morning, with a further 10 warrants undertaken in relation to vehicles.
The operation follows the Joint Counter Terrorism Team investigation of a group of people located in Sydney alleged to have the intent to carry out random attacks on individuals here in Australia.
Police believe this group was actively preparing for the attacks however there is no information regarding a specific attack, including dates, time or location.
The warrants were undertaken today to prevent the group’s planning activities at the earliest opportunity, and collect further evidence.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters that “exhortations” were coming from an Australian who is senior in the ISIS movement to support networks in Australia to “conduct demonstration killings.”
Also:
Further charges laid following Joint Counter-Terrorism raids — Operation Appleby: https://t.co/jHzoA7SG5n
BULLETIN: (Updated 2:09 p.m. EDT U.S.A.) The White House has announced that President Obama will address the American people at 9 p.m. EDT tomorrow on the threat posed by ISIS, a terrorist group that has seized lands in Iraq and Syria. ISIS, the asserted Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, also is known as ISIL.
ISIS is responsible for the beheadings of two American journalists overseas and is believed to be holding other individuals captive.
The President will deliver an address to the nation from the State Floor of the White House Wednesday night at 9:00 PM EDT to discuss with the American people the threat posed by ISIL and to lay out the United States’ strategy for degrading and ultimately destroying the terrorist group.
Also see AP story dated today via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that quotes a New York City police official talking about the “mass marketing of terrorism.”
Thursday is the 13 anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
BULLETIN: (2nd Update 1:58 p.m. ET U.S.A.) The FBI has arrested a man from Rochester, N.Y., saying he planned to show his support for ISIS by carrying out a machete attack today at a bar/restaurant in the Rochester area. ISIS is a terrorist group also known as ISIL.
