A man accused of attempting to provide financial support to Al Qaeda was indicted Tuesday for allegedly trying to hire someone to kill the presiding judge in his case.
According to the Justice Department, Yahya Farooq Mohammad, of the United Arab Emirates, was charged with attempted first degree murder of a federal officer, solicitation to commit a crime of violence and use of interstate commerce facilities in commission of murder for hire.
Mohammad, 37, was one of four men indicted last year. The men were accused of planning to travel to Yemen and give thousands of dollars to late Al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki.
This past April, Mohammad allegedly told a fellow inmate at the Lucas County Corrections Center in Toledo that he wanted U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary kidnapped and murdered and was willing to pay $15,000 for a hitman.
The Justice Department says the inmate put Mohammad in contact with an undercover FBI agent. That agent was given a $1,000 payment by Mohammad's wife at a suburban Chicago post office on May 5. Six days later, Mohammad told the agent that the rest of the money would be wired to his wife from Dubai via Texas.
On May 16, the undercover agent met Mohammad's wife again, showed her what he said was a photograph of Zouhary's dead body and told her he needed the remainder of the money.
"Conspiring to have a judge killed is not the way to avoid being prosecuted," FBI Special Agent Stephen Anthony said in a statement, "now Mohammad will be held accountable for additional serious federal charges."
There was no immediate comment from Mohammad's attorney.
If convicted, Mohammad faces up to 20 years in prison on each of the the attempted murder and soliciation charges, as well as up to 10 years in prison on the use of interstate commerce facilities charge.
Mohammad has already pleaded not guilty to the earlier terrorism charges.
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