Rezwan Ferdaus (born 1985) is a United States citizen of Bangladeshi descent who is serving a federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to terrorism charges in 2012.

Biography

Ferdaus was born and raised in Ashland, Massachusetts. He had two previous arrests, one for a high school prank during which he and other students poured cement on in front of the school doors, and the other for marijuana possession. Ferdaus studied physics at Northeastern University in Boston.

Arrest

An undercover FBI agent infiltrated Ferdaus' local mosque, and coaxed him into agreeing to participate in a terror attack, despite being aware he had a mental disability. Ferdaus was arrested by the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

on September 28, 2011, for plotting to attack

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a meton ...

and the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

Building with remote-controlled model aircraft packed with C-4 explosives. He was also charged with supporting Al-Qaeda by plotting attacks on American soldiers abroad and making

detonators A detonator, frequently a blasting cap, is a device used to trigger an explosive device. Detonators can be chemically, mechanically, or electrically initiated, the last two being the most common. The commercial use of explosives uses electri ...

for

improvised explosive devices An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mechan ...

Guilty plea and sentencing

On July 20, 2012, Ferdaus pleaded guilty to the following charges in Federal District Court in Boston, Massachusetts: *

Conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agre ...

to destroy national defense premises *Conspiracy to damage and destroy buildings owned by the U.S. government *Conspiracy to provide material support and resources to Al-Qaeda. Prosecutors and Ferdaus's defense attorneys agreed to recommend a 17-year sentence. On November 1, 2012, Judge Richard Stearns sentenced Ferdaus to 17 years in federal prison. Ferdaus is incarcerated at the

United States Penitentiary, Victorville The United States Penitentiary, Victorville, CA (USP Victorville) is a high-security United States federal prison for male inmates in California. It is part of the Federal Correctional Complex, Victorville (FCC Victorville) and is operated by th ...

, a high-security facility in California, and is scheduled for release in 2026.

Human Rights Watch

Ferdaus's arrest and prosecution has been criticized by

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

, who state that he was incapable of carrying out the plans which were alleged. Ferdaus experienced severe physical and mental health issues leading up to his arrest, at one point requiring his father to quit his job to take care of him. The FBI knew about his mental health issues, but continued the operation.

References

External links