Budiman knew hijacker<\/p>\n
D. Ian Hopper, Associated Press, Washington<\/p>\n
An Indonesian man charged with document fraud knew Mohammed
\nAtta because the two attended the same mosque in Germany, but he
\nhad not seen the hijacker since he came to the United States, his
\nlawyer said on Friday.<\/p>\n
Ivan Yacub, Agus Budiman's immigration lawyer, said 31-year-
\nold Budiman knew Atta by the alias Mohammed Al-Amir. Budiman and
\nAtta attended the same mosque in Hamburg, Germany, Yacub said in
\nan interview with The Associated Press.<\/p>\n
Investigators believe Atta ran a terrorist cell in Hamburg
\nbefore coming to the United States, where he was the suspected
\nringleader in the four airline hijackings on Sept. 11.<\/p>\n
Budiman came to the United States from Hamburg in October
\n2000, according to a criminal complaint.<\/p>\n
Budiman is being charged with helping another man, Mohammad
\nBin Nasser Belfas, obtain a Virginia driver's license.<\/p>\n
(Officials in Indonesia said Budiman, a Jakarta resident of
\nSouth Kalimantan origins, studied architecture in Hamburg before
\nmoving to the United States. They also said Belfas was born in
\nIndonesia but he had since taken German citizenship.)<\/p>\n
Budiman and Belfas were on a list of 370 people sought by the
\nFBI for questioning in the attacks on New York and Washington.<\/p>\n
The list was made public by Finnish authorities more than a
\nmonth ago.<\/p>\n
Budiman is identified on the list as a U.S. contact for Atta.<\/p>\n
Belfas is identified as a contact for Osama bin Laden, the
\nsuspected mastermind of the attacks. No charges against Belfas
\nhave been made public, and his whereabouts are unclear.<\/p>\n
Budiman had not seen Atta since Budiman came to the United
\nStates, and the two were not close friends, Yacub said. Budiman
\nhas been questioned by federal agents \"several times\" about Atta
\nand the hijackings, the lawyer said.<\/p>\n
Yacub said he has not seen any indication that Budiman
\nassisted the terrorists. Neither Budiman nor Belfas has been
\ncharged with any crimes related to terrorism or the hijackings.<\/p>\n
\"You ask yourself, 'Where's the evidence?'\" Yacub said.<\/p>\n
The government alleges Budiman helped Belfas obtain a Virginia
\nID card by certifying that he and Belfas lived at an Arlington,
\nVirginia, apartment.<\/p>\n
Neither of the men actually lived there, the complaint said,
\nbut Belfas later used the ID card to obtain a driver's license.<\/p>\n
According to the complaint, Budiman told investigators that
\nBelfas wanted the Virginia driver's license as a souvenir to take
\nback with him to Germany.<\/p>\n
Budiman said he knew what he did was wrong, investigators
\nsaid, but didn't think it was a serious offense.<\/p>\n
Yacub said immigrants \"tend to rotate\" through addresses.<\/p>\n
The complaint states that Budiman's brother once lived in a
\ndifferent apartment in the Arlington building, but that Budiman
\nand Belfas in fact lived in Maryland.<\/p>\n
Budiman is also being held under charges that he lied on his
\nimmigration forms, overstayed his visa and worked illegally as a
\nfood delivery driver.<\/p>\n
Budiman was scheduled to be arraigned in federal court in the
\nWashington suburb of Alexandria on Friday.<\/p>\n
But he told the magistrate he had no criminal lawyer to
\nrepresent him. Yacub said he is Budiman's immigration lawyer, and
\nis not licensed to practice in Virginia.<\/p>\n
Budiman asked for a court-appointed attorney and the
\narraignment was postponed until Monday.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/budiman-knew-hijacker-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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