The Newburgh 4: A Case of FBI Entrapment.....?

Today's show will focus on the Newburgh 4 case.

On October 18, four men were convicted of planning to blow up Jewish synagogues and shoot down cargo planes from Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York. The four men are David Williams, Onta Williams, Laguerre Payen, and James Cromitie.

They are African American, Muslim, and many believe were victims of an unethical entrapment scheme devised by the FBI.

According to reports, FBI informant, Shaheed Hussain, infiltrated the mosque of one of the defendants, James Cromitie, and convinced him to participate in a plot to blow up synagogues and U.S. military planes. The plot was concocted by the FBI and the bombs were fake, but because of the willingness to take part in the terrorist plot, Cromitie and the other 3 defendants--who were recruited later into the scheme by Cromitie-- were convicted on October 18th of conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction in the United States and face the possibility of spending the rest of their lives in prison.

We will speak with Bennett Weiss of the Orange County Peace and Justice Committee and Alicia McWilliams, the aunt of one of the Newburgh 4 defendants.

Bennett Weiss has been organizing actions to bring attention to the entrapment practices of the FBI as played out in the Newburgh 4 case. In this segment, he provides some background details on the Newburgh 4 story.

Alicia McWilliams is the aunt of David Williams--one of the Newburgh 4 defendants just recently convicted of conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction in the United States. The charge can carry a possible sentence of life in prison. David Williams is 29 years old. McWilliams spoke with "On the Block" in Harlem last week.

Special Thanks.

The PA Prison Reports are compiled by Andy and Bret of the Human Rights Coalition based on the accounts of prisoner correspondents and the investigations of HRC members.  From the compiled data, the reports are re-written by Andy into the narratives you hear on "On The Block Radio."  Many thanks.  To access written transcripts of the PA Prison Reports, please go to: www.hrcoalition.org.