Members
Batiste was the leader of the group. He is married and he and his wife Minerva have three boys and a girl . Batiste's relatives described him as a "Moses-like" figure who roamed his neighborhood wearing a robe and carrying a crooked wooden cane as he recruited young men, based his teachings on those of the Moorish Science Temple of America.
Batiste once drove a FedEx truck in Chicago and was a member of the volunteer Guardian Angels, an anti-crime group. His father, Narcisse Batiste, sister and two of his brothers are Christian ministers. His mother Audrey Batiste died in 2000.
According to the indictment, Batiste told an FBI informant posing as an al-Qaeda member around December 16, 2005 that he was organizing a mission to build an "Islamic Army" in order to wage jihad against the United States with his "soldiers" to destroy the Sears Tower. He requested a list of materials and equipment needed to wage jihad, including boots, uniforms, machine guns, radios, and vehicles.
Around December 22, 2005, he provided said "al-Qaeda representative" with shoe sizes of his "soldiers" and received military boots a week later. Around that same time he requested radios, binoculars, bulletproof vests, vehicles and $50,000 cash.
On February 19, 2006, in a meeting with the "al-Qaeda representative," along with Patrick Abraham, he expressed interest in attending al-Qaeda training during April and gave further details of the mission to wage "a full ground war" against the United States in order to "kill all the devils we can" in a mission that would "be just as good or greater than 9/11." He requested a video camera for the trip to Chicago.
Around March 10, 2006 he along with Lyglenson Lemorin met with the FBI plant in Miami-Dade County, Florida and swore fealty to al-Qaeda. Around March 16, 2006, along with Patrick Abraham, Stanley Phanor, Naudimar Herrera, Burson Augustin, Lyglenson Lemorin, and Rotschild Augustine, Batiste met with the "al-Qaeda representative," swore an oath of loyalty to al-Qaeda and discussed plans to bomb the FBI building in five cities. At this meeting, Batiste took possession of a video camera and promised to obtain "good footage" of the North Miami Beach FBI building.
Around March 23, 2006, Batised asked the FBI informant for a rental van for himself and his conspirators to take reconnaissance footage of the FBI building. Around March 24, 2006, Patrick Abraham drove Batiste by car by the FBI and the National Guard Armory buildings in Miami-Dade, Florida. Around the same date, they traveled with the "al-Qaeda representative" to purchase a digital camera. Around March 26, 2006, Batiste and Burson Augustin provided the FBI informant with photographs and video footage of the FBI building and the James Lawrence King Federal Justice Building, federal courthouse, Federal Detention Center, and the Miami Police Department buildings. They met again around April 6 to discuss the photographs and footage.
Around May 24, 2006, Batiste told the "al-Qaeda representative" that he was experiencing delays because of various problems within his organization but that he wanted to continue his mission and maintain his relationship with al-Qaeda.
Read more about this topic: Liberty City Seven
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