In a criminal complaint that is preposterously light on details and high on speculation, the FBI is charging Texas-born Muhanad al-Farekh with conspiracy to aid terrorism.
What is known is very little. Farekh was in college in Winnipeg in 2006 and he and some other students reportedly talked about going to Pakistan to “jihad.” In 2007, he flew to Pakistan.
There’s no real evidence of anything he did while he was in Pakistan, and rather the complaint centers on noting that one of the other guys training someone how to use an AK-47.
Farekh was believed to go to Pakistan’s tribal areas, and he speaks Arabic. The FBI concludes that most people who go to the tribal areas and can speak Arabic do so to join al-Qaeda, and are hoping that’s enough to make the charges stick.
Winnipeg Canada is a hot bed for these types.