Colleen LaRose

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Colleen Renee LaRose
Born (1963-06-05) June 5, 1963 (age 50)[1]
Michigan
Nationality United States
Alias(es) JihadJane; Fatima LaRose
Motive Jihad (alleged)
Charge(s) 1) conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists;
2) conspiracy to kill a person in a foreign country;
3) making false statements to the FBI;
and 4) attempted identity theft (unsealed March 9, 2010)[2][3]
Conviction status Pleaded guilty to all charges on February 1, 2011
Parents Cecil Wilkinson (stepfather)

Colleen Renee LaRose (born June 5, 1963),[4] also known as JihadJane and Fatima LaRose, is an American citizen who pleaded guilty in February 2011 to charges in terrorism-related crimes, including conspiracy to commit murder and providing material support to terrorists.[1][5]

She had married at age 16 and never finished high school. After a quick divorce, she later married again at age 24, and divorced after a decade. She had moved from Texas in 2004 to live in Pennsburg, near Reading, Pennsylvania. After personal losses and attempting suicide in 2005, she converted to Islam at some later time. She is being prosecuted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.[3][6]

LaRose was taken into custody in October 2009, and her arrest was made public on March 9, 2010, after seven alleged co-conspirators were arrested in Ireland (five were later released by the Irish authorities).[3] Among those arrested in Ireland (later released by the Irish authorities, but then arrested by U.S. authorities and charged as a co-defendant with LaRose in a superseding indictment) was Jamie Paulin-Ramirez, an American woman from Colorado, whose parents say she was recruited by LaRose.[1][5][7] Specifically, LaRose was charged with trying to recruit Islamic terrorists to wage violent jihad and of plotting to murder the Swedish artist Lars Vilks, who had drawn a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad.[1][3][5][8][9][10]

She was arraigned and initially pleaded not guilty on March 18, 2010.[11] She faced a maximum penalty of life in prison, and a $1 million fine.[11] On February 1, 2011 she pleaded guilty to all charges against her.[12]

Contents

Background[edit]

LaRose was born in Michigan and raised in Texas, where she dropped out of school before attending high school. She was briefly married at the age of 16 to Sheldon Barnum, who was 32 at the time. She later married Rodolfo "Rudy" Cavazos in 1988, when she was 24 years old; the marriage ended in divorce ten years later in 1998.[13][14][15][16] She lived in several Texas towns, including San Angelo; Corpus Christi (which she moved to in 1999); Round Rock; and Ferris (in the early 2000s).[9][17][18]

She moved to the Philadelphia area in 2004 to live with her new boyfriend Kurt Gorman, whom she had met in Ennis, Texas, when he was on a business trip. She helped him care for his aging father.[3][9][10][19][20][20][21][22]

Saddened by the deaths in short order of her brother and father, LaRose apparently attempted suicide on May 21, 2005, by consuming 8–10 cyclobenzaprine pills along with alcohol.[6] Her sister Pam in Texas had been worried about her and called 911 to alert police.[23][24] LaRose told responding police that she did not want to die.[25] She lived with Gorman for about five years. During that period, she apparently converted to Islam and became radicalized,[3][6][20][21] but Gorman said that she "never talked about international events, about Muslims, anything".[26][27][27]

Conversion to Islam[edit]

Her Myspace profile features images of bloodshed and violence in the Middle East, with messages such as: “Palestine We Are With You”, and “Sympathize With Gaza.”[20][20][28][28] In her profile, she says she is a recent convert to Islam.[20][28] Her Myspace profile also reportedly includes a post that reads: “I support all the Mujahideen [Muslim warriors]. I hate zionist & all that support them!”[7]

In 2007, calling herself "Fatima LaRose," she registered a social networking video-sharing profile on Dailymotion.com. She posted copies of what appear to be attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq.[29] On June 20, 2008, she posted a comment on YouTube using the screen name "JihadJane" (account is suspended), saying that she was "desperate to do something somehow to help" suffering Muslims, according to authorities.[2] By December 2008, she was exchanging e-mail messages expressing her desire to become a martyr in the name of Allah for an Islamist cause.[3][28]

One of her co-conspirators allegedly identified Lars Vilks as a target; the Swedish artist who had outraged some Muslims by drawing a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad. LaRose was directed on March 22, 2009, to go to Sweden, to find and kill Vilks to frighten "the whole Kufar [non-believer] world".[3] According to her indictment, she responded in writing: "I will make this my goal till I achieve it or die trying".[3]

On July 1, LaRose allegedly posted an online solicitation for funds to support terrorism.[3] U.S. authorities were alerted in July by members of the Jawa Report blog, who had begun tracking LaRose's comments on the internet and her movements, including her raising funds for Pakistani militants through Twitter.[17][30] The FBI interviewed her on July 17, 2009, and she denied soliciting funds for terrorism, or using the online screen name of "JihadJane."[2]

On August 23, 2009, LaRose stole Gorman's passport and flew to Western Europe. Prosecutors say the purpose of the trip was "to live and train with jihadists, and to find and kill" Vilks.[3][9] She joined an online community hosted by Vilks on September 8.[2] On September 30, she allegedly sent an online message to a co-conspirator, saying that it would be "an honor & great pleasure to die or kill" for him, and promising that "only death will stop me here that I am so close to the target!"[2] During her time in Europe, she reportedly traveled in London, the Netherlands, and for approximately two weeks in Ireland.[17][31][32] While she wrote to the Swedish embassy in March 2009, inquiring how to obtain residency, the court documents do not indicate whether she reached Sweden.[16]

Arrest, indictment, and arraignment[edit]

LaRose was arrested on Oct. 16, 2009, at Philadelphia International Airport as she returned from London. She allegedly confessed her role in the plot to kill Vilks to FBI agents shortly after her arrest, according to two people close to the investigation.[17] Her imprisonment was kept secret until her indictment was unsealed on March 9, 2010.[9] In a court appearance before a federal magistrate on October 17, she agreed to pretrial detention, but did not enter a plea.[2][21] She was kept in custody in Philadelphia without bail until her indictment was unsealed, to protect another investigation.[33][34]

The indictment of LaRose charged that she linked up with militants outside the U.S. through the internet, and plotted to carry out a murder. It said that she and five unindicted co-conspirators (in South Asia, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and the U.S.) recruited men and women over the internet to wage jihad and be terrorists in South Asia and Europe and to finance terrorism.[1][2][3][5][28][35] She was charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, conspiracy to kill in a foreign country, making false statements to the FBI, and attempted identity theft.[1][2][3][5] Swedish authorities said they were aware of the arrest before it happened.[36]

LaRose was arraigned on March 18, 2010, and pleaded not guilty to all four counts.[11][34] United States magistrate judge Lynne Sitarski set her trial date for May 3, 2010; during the interim she remained in federal custody.[37] If convicted, she faced a maximum penalty of life in prison, and a $1 million fine.[11][38] On February 1, 2011 LaRose changed her plea to all charges.[39]

Ireland arrests[edit]

The same day as the unsealing of LaRose's indictment, four men and three women in their 20s and 40s were arrested in Waterford and Cork, Ireland, with regard to an alleged plot to assassinate Vilks.[2][36][40] Gardai close to the investigation said those arrested were foreign-born Irish residents.[40]

They reportedly included three Algerians (two of them a married couple), a Croatian (a Muslim convert), a Palestinian, a Libyan, and a U.S. national—Jamie Paulin-Ramirez.[32][41] By March 15, only two of the seven, an Algerian and a Libyan, were being kept in custody and charged, though lawyers said charges against the other five were also possible.[41] The Algerian, Ali Charaf Damache, aka Theblackflag,[42] a 10-year resident of Ireland, was suspected of being the group’s leader, and the Libyan, Abdul Salam al-Jahani, were both ordered held without bail.[41]

LaRose had online discussions with at least one of the suspects apprehended in Ireland regarding her plans, according to a U.S. official.[21] Her main contact in Ireland was believed to be Damache, who lived in Waterford with Paulin-Ramirez.[43] Gardai believe LaRose visited Ireland in 2009 to enlist and aid those involved.[44]

The Garda Síochána were alerted by the FBI in October 2009 about the Irish link to the alleged murder plot, and a Garda investigation was put in place to covertly gather as much information as possible on the Irish-based suspects.[45] Garda said that throughout the investigation they worked closely with law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and in a number of European countries.[40] The charges against LaRose were reportedly related to the Irish investigation.[9]

LaRose was the only American woman in recent years to have been charged in the U.S. with terrorist violations and attempting to foment a terror conspiracy to kill someone overseas.[46] Some terrorism experts pointed to LaRose's apparent mental instability, arguing she was an anomaly and not representative of a trend towards women jihadists.[47]

See also[edit]

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References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f (AFP) – Mar 9, 2010 (March 9, 2010). "AFP: US 'JihadJane' recruited for Europe, SAsia attacks: charges". Google.com. Retrieved April 3, 2010. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Hinkelman, Michael (March 10, 2010). "Feds: Montco woman led Net death plot". Philadelphia Daily News. Retrieved March 10, 2010. [dead link]
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Indictment, U.S. v. LaRose". U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. March 4, 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010. 
  4. ^ "'Jihad Jane' and 7 others held in plot to kill Swedish cartoonist / The Christian Science Monitor". CSMonitor.com. March 10, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2010. 
  5. ^ a b c d e http://www.justice.gov/usao/pae/News/Pr/2010/apr/paulin_indictment.pdf
  6. ^ a b c Nunally, Derrick; Shea, Brady, and King, Larry (March 11, 2010). "‘JihadJane’s’ life like a ‘country music song’". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved March 11, 2010. [dead link]
  7. ^ a b Anti-Defamation League: ““Jihad Jane” Indicted on Terror Charges in Pennsylvania” March 10, 2010
  8. ^ Emily Friedman and Jason Ryan (March 9, 2010). "American Colleen LaRose Called Herself Jihad Jane". ABC News. 
  9. ^ a b c d e f Gorenstein, Nathan; Shiffman, John. "Prosecutors: "JihadJane" ideal for terror attack". 
  10. ^ a b "Woman with San Angelo ties arrested in terrorist plot; Accused is said to have wanted to help suffering Muslims". San Angelo Standard Times. March 9, 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010. 
  11. ^ a b c d Urbina, Ian (March 18, 2010). "Woman Known as JihadJane Pleads Not Guilty". NYTimes.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  12. ^ Candiotti, Susan; Levitt, Ross (February 1, 2011). "Woman called 'Jihad Jane' pleads guilty". CNN. 
  13. ^ "Terror suspect left a faint trail in San Angelo". Standard-Times. Gosanangelo.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  14. ^ "'Jihad Jane': Ex-Husband Speaks Out About Terror Suspect – ABC News". Abcnews.go.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  15. ^ Carrie Johnson and Alice Crites (March 16, 2010). "'JihadJane' suspect dropped out before high school, married at 16". Washington Post. 
  16. ^ a b "Terror Suspect "Jihad Jane" Pleads Not Guilty". NBC Philadelphia. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  17. ^ a b c d Nunally, Derrick; Shiffman, Johan, and Shea, Kathleen Brady (March 18, 2010). "JihadJane said to have confessed". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  18. ^ "Ex-Husband of Jihad Jane Tells His Story | KIII TV3 – News, Sports, Weather South Texas, Corpus Christi | Local News". Kiiitv.com. March 11, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  19. ^ "MacDonald, Sally, "'Jihad Jane' Has Texas Ties", ''MyFox Houston'', March 10, 2010, accessed March 11, 2010". Myfoxhouston.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  20. ^ a b c d e f Drogin, Bob; Portnoy, Jenna (March 11, 2010). "JihadJane? To most she was just Colleen". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 11, 2010. 
  21. ^ a b c d Dale, MaryClaire (March 10, 2010). "'Jihad Jane' indictment shows terror's evolution". Associate Press. Retrieved March 10, 2010. 
  22. ^ "Terror Suspect Has Strong Ties to Corpus Christi". kiiitv.com. March 10, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  23. ^ "Officials: Colleen LaRose, Who Is Accused Of Plotting Terrorism, Fits No Known Profile". cbs11tv.com. March 10, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  24. ^ Bender, William. ""Before 'jihad,' Colleen had her demons", ''Philadelphia Daily News'', March 11, 2010, accessed March 12, 2010". Philly.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010.  More than one of |author= and |last= specified (help)[dead link]
  25. ^ "Police say suspect in terror plot attempted suicide in 2005". CNN. March 10, 2010. Retrieved March 11, 2010. 
  26. ^ Leonard, Tom (March 10, 2010). "Blond haired Jihad Jane plotted terror attacks". London: The Telegraph. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  27. ^ a b "Yahoo News: Boyfriend: 'Jihad Jane' wasn't religious". News.yahoo.com. March 9, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  28. ^ a b c d e Savage, Charles (March 9, 2010). "Pennsylvania Woman Tied to Plot on Cartoonist". New York Times. Retrieved March 10, 2010. 
  29. ^ O'Connell, Vanessa (March 10, 2010). "O'Connell, Vanessa, "'Jihad Jane' Had Troubled Past", ''The Wall Street Journal'', March 10, 2010, accessed March 11, 2010". Online.wsj.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  30. ^ [1][dead link]
  31. ^ "Jihad Jane was in Ireland for a fact-finding trip". belfasttelegraph.co.uk. March 11, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  32. ^ a b O'Connell, Vanessa; Simon, Stephanie, and Perez, Evan (March 13, 2010). "For the Love of Islam". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved March 13, 2010. 
  33. ^ "Jihad Jane, American who lived on Main Street", CNN, March 10, 2010, accessed March 10, 2010
  34. ^ a b "'JihadJane' a Sign of the Evolution of Terrorism Threat?". Fox News. March 10, 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010. [dead link]
  35. ^ "Department of Justice Press Release, "Pennsylvania Woman Indicted in Plot to Recruit Violent Jihadist Fighters and to Commit Murder Overseas", ''FBI.gov'', March 9, 2010, accessed March 12, 2010". Fbi.gov. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  36. ^ a b "Muslims detained in Ireland due to cartoonist affair" (in Arabic). alJazeera Net. March 10, 2010. Retrieved March 11, 2010. 
  37. ^ Nunnally, Derrick (March 18, 2010). "‘JihadJane’ pleads not-guilty". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philly.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  38. ^ "Loeb, Pat, "Montco Woman Charged as Jihadist", ''KYW Newsradio 1060'', March 10, 2010, accessed March 10, 2010". Kyw1060.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. [dead link]
  39. ^ "Jihad Jane pleads guilty to planning cartoonist murder", The Guardian, 2 February 2011
  40. ^ a b c Pogatchnik, Shawn (March 9, 2010). "Irish arrest 7 over threat to kill Swedish artist". The Buffalo News/Associated Press. Retrieved March 9, 2010. [dead link]
  41. ^ a b c Quinn, Eamon; Burns, John F. (March 16, 2010). "Hearing Gives Details on Suspected Plot". Retrieved March 16, 2010. 
  42. ^ "Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to Terrorists". US Department of Justice. Retrieved 7/6/2012. 
  43. ^ Your country, your call (March 12, 2010). "Brady, Tom, "Gardai link terror swoop detainees to 'Jihad Jane'", ''Irish Independent'', March 12, 2010, accessed March 12, 2010". Independent.ie. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  44. ^ "Cooper, Patrick, "'Jihad Jane' may have visited Ireland to enlist for al-Qaida plot", ''Irish Central'', March 10, 2010, accessed March 12, 2010". Irishcentral.com. Retrieved March 18, 2010. 
  45. ^ "Two for court over 'murder plot". irishtimes.com. March 15, 2010. Retrieved March 16, 2010-March 18, 2010. 
  46. ^ Williams, Pete (March 9, 2010). "Pa. woman accused of recruiting jihadists". MSNBC / Associated Press. 
  47. ^ Leonard, Tom (March 10, 2010). "Blond-haired 'Jihad Jane' plotted terror attacks". London: Telegraph. Retrieved March 11, 2010. 
United States Alleged militants in the War on Terror who have lived in the United States
September 11 attacks
Buffalo Six
al-Qaeda / Islamic Jihad /
al-Jihad
Boston cab drivers
Portland Seven
Arrested in 2005
and convicted
Liberty City Seven
  • Patrick Abraham
  • Burson Augustin
  • Rotschild Augustine
  • Narseal Batiste
  • Stanley Phanor
2007 Fort Dix plot
  • Agron Abdullahu
  • Dritan Duka
  • Eljvir Duka
  • Shain Duka
  • Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer
  • Serdar Tatar
2009 Bronx plot
  • James Cromitie
  • David Williams
  • Onta Williams
2010 Vilks assassination plot
  • Colleen LaRose
  • Jamie Paulin-Ramirez
D.C. Five
  • Umer Farooq
  • Waqar Khan
  • Ahmed Abdullah Minni
  • Aman Hassan Yasir
  • Ramy Zamzam
Others
Held in Guantánamo Bay

External links[edit]

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