2007 Fort Dix Attack Plot - Trial

Trial

The six suspects were indicted on June 5, 2007 and were arraigned in federal court in Camden, New Jersey on June 14 where they pled not guilty. The U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler called it "an unusual case" and called for the trial to begin by early October, adding, "If the government is not able to prove this case, they should not be in jail. I want to get this resolved."

Agron Abdullahu, suspected of having the smallest role in the attack plot, accepted a plea bargain with a limit of 5 years in prison for his weapons offenses. Prosecutors say that while Abdullahu supplied weapons to the other five men, he resisted the idea of attacking the military base.

Opening arguments were presented on October 20, 2008. Assistant U.S. Attorney William Fitzpatrick asserted that the defendants were inspired by jihad, saying "Their motive was to defend Islam. Their inspiration was Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. Their intention was to attack the U.S." Prosecutors presented recordings of the plot obtained by two paid FBI informants during a 16-month undercover investigation, as well as suspicious videos that were found on one defendant's computer. Defense attorneys countered that the videos, alleged by the prosecution to be terrorist training videos, showed the defendants on holiday exhibiting "false bravado". They attacked the credibility of the prosecution's witnesses. On December 22, 2008, the jury found the plotters to be guilty of charges of conspiracy to harm US military personnel. They were acquitted on the charge of attempted murder.

During sentencing, Dritan and Shain Duka received life sentences for the conspiracy conviction, with an additional 30 years for related weapons charges. Eljvir Duka and Mohamad Shnewer both received life sentences, and Serdar Tatar was sentenced to 33 years in prison.

A 2011 NPR report said that some of the men associated with this group were imprisoned in a highly restrictive Communication Management Unit.