Mohamad Anas Haitham Soueid
Mohamad Anas Haitham Soueid | |
---|---|
Born | |
Other names | Alex Soueid, Anas Alswaid |
Citizenship | American |
Criminal status | Convicted |
Allegiance | Government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad |
Criminal charge | Espionage |
Mohamad Anas Haitham Soueid (also known as Alex Soueid and Anas Alswaid)
The arrest and indictment occurred during the
Early life and career
Soueid's cousin Rasha Elass stated that Soueid immigrated to the United States 20 years ago with $600 and eventually earned a salary of over $300,000 a year working for a
Following the economic downturn, an aunt of Soueid living in Paris wired $200,000 to Soueid via "an account in the name of a used car dealership".[9] Elass stated that the $200,000 came from her family, which includes a "Saudi oil company executive", so Soueid could start a limousine service.[7]
Soueid has a wife of 17 years and twin 15-year-old sons.[7] Soueid's name is pronounced Swayd.[10]
Earlier civil lawsuit
Soueid was named as a
Alleged spying activities
When Syrian American pro-democracy protesters held rallies against Bashir's government in the summer 2011, they reported noticing a middle-aged man with a camera in a Hummer. According to the Globe and Mail, "days later, thugs in Syria arrived at their relatives' homes in Syria, and dragged people away. One American dissident had her father killed."[11]
On October 5, 2011, Soueid was
On October 12, the
The indictment deals with Soueid's alleged activity beginning in March 2011.
The indictment also alleges that Soueid met with Syrian intelligence officials and spoke with Assad privately on a June 2011 trip funded by the Syrian government,[3][4] specifically stating that a July email he sent to an unidentified alleged co-conspirator included a photograph of Soueid meeting with Assad.[14]
The two counts of making false statements in the indictment stem from the FBI's interview Soueid in August. Soueid was searched and questioned by authorities upon his return to the U.S. at the
The charge of listing a false current address on a firearms purchase application stems from Soueid's alleged purchase of a .40-caliber Beretta pistol on July 11.[2][4][13]
The White House National Security Council spokesman stated that "This desperate effort to monitor protesters in the United States shows that the Assad government is grasping for any means to silence those speaking out against their brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters. But the government's efforts to monitor and silence protesters here in the United States will do nothing to satisfy men and women in Syria who are yearning for democracy and freedom. As long as Assad remains in power, we will continue working in concert with our international allies around the world to increase pressure on him and his government until he steps down."[15]
The Syrian Embassy in Washington released a statement stating that the charges were "baseless and totally unacceptable" and part of "a campaign of distortion and fabrications against the Embassy of Syria in the U.S." The embassy denied that Soueid or any other U.S. citizen acted as an agent of the Syrian Government and denied any private meeting took place between Assad and Mr. Soueid.[4]
Case proceedings
Soueid made his first court appearance at 2 pm on October 12 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Theresa C. Buchanan.[2][4][16] At the appearance, Dennis Fitzpatrick, the federal prosecutor for the case, stated that Soueid posed "a serious risk of flight", and the magistrate judge ordered Soueid held pending a detention hearing on October 14. Soueid appeared dressed in a black fleece sweater and blue jeans and stated that he had not yet had a chance to contact his attorney.[6] Soueid subsequently obtained a defense attorney, Haytham Faraj.[7]
At an October 18 hearing on bail before U.S. Magistrate Judge T. Rawles Jones, Jr., prosecutor Fitzpatrick argued that Soueid should be held pending trial, stating that Soueid could flee the country and emphasized Soueid's July meeting with Assad as well as "communications about setting up bank accounts in
At an October 28 hearing before U.S. District Judge
He was convicted of unlawfully acting as an agent of a foreign government on March 26, 2012. [21]
References
- ^ a b c "Virginia Man Accused of Aiding His Native Syria in Trying to Stifle Dissent Archived October 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine" (October 12, 2011). Main Justice.
- ^ a b c d e f "Syrian-born American held for spying" (October 12, 2011). CNN.
- ^ a b c d e Tim Mak, "Virginia man busted for spying for Syria" (October 12, 2011). Politico.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j J. David Goodman. "U.S. Accuses Virginia Man of Espionage at Syria Protests" (October 12, 2011). New York Times.
- ^ a b Matthew Barakat. "Man accused of spying on Syrian dissidents in US." Associated Press.
- ^ a b "Va. man indicted on charges of spying for Syria" (October 12, 2011). CBS News/Associated Press.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Alexa Vaughn, "Judge orders house arrest for Syrian American accused of spying" (October 19, 2011). Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Greta Kreuz, "Mohamad Anas Haitham Soueid charged, accused of spying for Syrian government" (October 12, 2011). WJLA-TV.
- ^ "Syrian-American Pleads Not Guilty to Spying on Dissidents" (October 28, 2011). Naharnet.
- ^ "Syrian government denies US spying allegations" (October 12, 2011). Associated Press.
- ^ Paul Loring. "Syria's bizarre and brutal plot to silence protests comes to the U.S" (October 13, 2011). The Globe and Mail
- ^ Josh Rogin, "Virginia man charged with spying on Syrian Americans" (October 12, 2011). Foreign Policy.
- ^ a b "US citizen charged with spying on Syrian protesters for Assad regime" (October 12, 2011). Reuters.
- ^ Evan Perez, "Syrian-American Accused of Spying on Protesters" (October 12, 2011). Wall Street Journal.
- ^ a b Associated Press. "Va. man accused of working for Syrian intelligence" (October 12, 2011).
- ^ "Virginia Man Accused of Acting as Unregistered Agent of Syrian Government and Spying on Syrian Protestors in America" (press release) (October 12, 2011). United States Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs.
- ^ a b "Judge orders accused Syrian spy free on bail" (October 18, 2011). Associated Press.
- ^ a b c d Alexa Vaughn, "No release for U.S. man accused of spying on Syrian dissidents" (October 28, 2011). Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b c d Jeremy Pelofsky. "Syrian man pleads not guilty to U.S. spying charges Archived April 21, 2012, at the Wayback Machine" (October 28, 2011) Reuters.
- ^ Terry Frieden and Carol Cratty. "Syrian-born American pleads not guilty to spying[permanent dead link]" (October 28, 2011). CNN.
- ^ "FBI — Virginia Man Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Acting as Unregistered Agent for Syrian Government". Fbi.gov. Retrieved July 21, 2012.