Elton Simpson, reportedly one of the two gunmen responsible for the shooting in Garland, Texas, was convicted of lying to federal agents.
Lm Otero / AP
FBI officials identified one of the gunmen in the Texas attack as Phoenix-resident Elton Simpson, according to ABC News and the New York Times.
Simpson and another gunman, who has yet to be identified, allegedly opened fire outside an event inviting people to draw the prophet Muhammad in Garland, Texas on Sunday.
Simpson had been investigated by the FBI for terrorism five years ago. He was convicted for lying to federal agents about plans to travel to Africa.
Simpson, who was identified as an American Muslim, was indicted in January 2010 for making false statements to FBI agents. They claimed Simpson said he did not have plans to travel to Somalia despite an FBI informant recording a conversation indicating otherwise. The indictment also charged that the statement involved international and domestic terrorism, "for the purpose of engaging in violent jihad."
Simpson waived his right to trial by jury and instead elected to have a bench trial.
The FBI's criminal investigation in to Simpson began in 2006 in Phoenix, because at the time he was associating with someone the FBI believed was attempting to set up a terrorist cell in Arizona.
An FBI informant, Daba Dent, who is from Kenya and attended the same mosque as Simpson, befriended him in 2006. At the time, Deng told Simpson he was new to Islam and wanted to learn more. He began meeting with Simpson three to four times a week and recorded their conversations.
Simpson told Deng that "Allah loves an individual who is out there fighting [non-Muslims] and making difficult scarifies such as living in caves, sleeping on rocks rather than sleeping in comfortable beds and with his wife, children and nice cars."
He also told Deng that non-Muslims are fighting against Allah and that his money and taxes are going towards their weapons.
In a recording from May 2009, Simpson told Deng "it's time to go to Somalia."
The court ruled that even though Simpson gave false statements to FBI agents, the government did not prove Simpson's false statement involved international terrorism.
"The possibility that the defendant did in fact intend to go to Somalia to engage in violent jihad exists, as the defendant never presented an alternative reason for going there. However, that is not the defendant's burden and as stated, the Government has not established beyond a reasonable doubt that the Defendant had such intentions," the court found.
Simpson was sentenced to three years probation.
LINK: Gunmen Dead After Attack At Muhammad Art Exhibit And Cartoon Contest In Texas
from BuzzFeed - USNews http://ift.tt/1GUHuOl
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