My Fox Tampa BayTAMPA (FOX 13) –A jury has found Sami Osmakac guilty of trying to use weapons of mass destruction, FOX 13’s Gloria Gomez tweeted.
He was also charged with possessing an unregistered automatic weapon. The jury found him guilty on both counts.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office released a statement Tuesday evening.
“The jury’s verdict in this case represents another victory in our fight against terrorism, which remains our top priority,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III. “Our success here is due in part to assistance from the Muslim community, which brought the defendant’s extremist views to the attention of law enforcement.”
Defense attorneys said they were disappointed with the jurors decision.
“It is unfortunate the jury was unable to recognize the low intelligence [Osmakac] has, the susceptibility to being influenced, the fact that the FBI was on both sides of this transaction — giving him money on one side, and selling him the munitions on the other side,” said attorney George Tragos. “He really wasn’t able to resist that, and he didn’t have the normal faculties to resist that. But unfortunately, the jury didn’t agree with us.”
Before they rendered their verdict, jurors asked to see a video and the matching transcript. Itwas unclear which video they requested to see, but over the course of the nearly two week trial, numerous videos were shown in court. They included undercover videos of Osmakac discussing terror plans and buying weapons from an undercover agent and a confidential government informant.
Prosecutors say Osmakac planned to bomb all the bridges over Tampa Bay, take hostages at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino, and attack MacDinton’s Irish pub. In one of the videos, he is heard saying the attack should happen on a Thursday night, because it’s a popular night to go out.
Defense attorneys have said the videos show an entrapment scheme by the federal government. They told the jury their client had no money to buy weapons, and no ability to build bombs until the government showed up with money, weapons, and explosives.
They say they will appeal the verdict. His sentencing is scheduled for October 7.
http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/story/25742690/jury-finds-osmakac-guilty