NYC Subway Bomber: I Was Mad at Trump

Akayed Ullah convicted of terrorism charges
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Nov 6, 2018 4:32 PM CST
NYC Subway Bomber: I Was Mad at Trump
This undated file photo provided by the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission shows Akayed Ullah, who has been convicted of terrorism charges for setting off a pipe bomb in New York City's busiest subway station at rush hour last Dec. 11.   (New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission via AP, File)

A Bangladeshi immigrant convicted Tuesday of terrorism charges after setting off a pipe bomb in New York City's busiest subway station at rush hour told the trial judge he was angry at President Donald Trump and didn't carry out the attack for the Islamic State group. The verdict against Akayed Ullah was returned in Manhattan federal court after a trial in which the defense maintained he intended to kill only himself last Dec. 11, the AP reports. Nobody died, and most of the injuries were not serious. After the verdict was announced and the jury left the room, Ullah spoke out, telling the judge: "I was angry with Donald Trump because he says he will bomb the Middle East and then he will protect his nation. So I said: 'Donald Trump, you cannot do like this.' Nobody likes bombing, your honor." Judge Richard Sullivan told him: "Right now is not the time for a statement."

Ullah repeatedly told Sullivan he did not carry out the attack for the Islamic State group. Prosecutors said Ullah sought to maim or kill commuters in response to calls for "lone wolf" terrorist attacks by the terror organization. "Your honor, you heard what the government is trying to do. They are trying to put me in the group, which I don't support, your honor," Ullah told Sullivan. "Mr. Ullah, now is not the time for this," the judge told him. Sentencing was scheduled for April 5, when Ullah faces a mandatory 30-year prison sentence and could be sent to prison for life. The verdict capped a weeklong trial that featured surveillance video of Ullah the morning when his pipe bomb sputtered, seriously burning him in a corridor beneath Times Square and the Port Authority bus terminal, where most subway lines converge. (Weeks before the bombing, Ullah traveled hundreds of miles to deliver medicine to refugees.)

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