Abdul Hakim Murad (militant): Difference between revisions

This article is about the Pakistani militant Abdul-Hakim Murad, not to be confused with the former Timothy Winter, a Lecturer in Islamic studies at the University of Cambridge.

Abdul Hakim Ali Hashim Murad (Arabic: عبد الحكيم علي هشام مراد) born January 4, 1968) was an alleged conspirator in the Operation Bojinka planned mujahid attacks.

He used the alias Ahmed Saeed when Manila police apprehended him. He was mentioned on Ramzi Yousef's laptop personal computer as Obaid.

He was the Pakistani-born son of a crane operator working for a petroleum company in Kuwait. He graduated from a high school in Al-Jery, Kuwait.

He would then attend a series of flight schools, including Emirates Flying School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the Alpha Tango Flying Service in San Antonio, Texas, and flight schools in Schenectady, New York, New Bern, North Carolina, Louisiana, and Pasay City, Philippines. On June 8, 1992, he received a Commercial Pilot certificate while at Coastal Aviation Incorporated, after completing 275 hours of required flight time.

Ramzi Yousef, a friend of Murad's who attended terrorist camps in Afghanistan, taught Murad how to make bombs in Lahore, Pakistan. During one of the practice sessions, a bomb exploded in Yousef's face, impairing vision in one eye.

While they were in Metro Manila in the Philippines, Murad and Yousef often went to two karaoke bars, the XO on Adriatico Street, and the Firehouse on Roxas Boulevard in Pasay City. According to Murad, they never went to the mosque.

As part of the Bojinka plot, Murad was slated to bomb two United Airlines aircraft, and was also slated to be the suicide pilot that would pilot a small plane filled with explosives into the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

He was arrested shortly after police arrived at the Doña Josefa Apartments in Manila, Philippines in January 6, 1995, soon after a fire occurred when Murad was mixing chemicals. He left after the fire, but came back after the fire was put out to remove the laptop computer in the apartment, which contained the plans for the attack. He called himself Ahmed Saeed as he was being arrested. He offered 110,740 Philippine pesos ($2,000 U.S. dollars) to the Manila police if they let him go. Although they did not make that much money in a year, Aida Fariscal, the watch commander, refused to let him go. Police grew suspicious after "Saeed" mumbled that, "two Satans that must be destroyed: the Pope and America." This led a further search of room 603, where they found a bomb factory and a computer with data relating to the plot.

Abdul Hakim Murad was sent to the United States on April 12, 1995 and would later help convict Yousef based on Murad's testimony. Murad got a life sentence to prison on May 16, 1998. He is currently serving his time in ADX Florence, the Federal ADX Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado.

He was found to have many aliases. A Pakistani passport found had "Abdul Hakim, student, age 26, Pakistani passport No. C665334, issued in Kuwait."

External links

• CNN Article on Murad's conviction - Has a picture of Murad