Chicago, IL-(ENEWSPF)- A Hillside man was indicted today on federal charges for allegedly soliciting the murder of an undercover FBI agent after the defendant was arrested last September and charged with attempting to detonate a purported bomb outside a bar in downtown Chicago. The defendant, Adel Daoud, was charged with one count each of solicitation of murder or attempted murder of a federal agent, murder-for-hire, and obstruction of justice in a three-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury.
Daoud, 19, will be arraigned on today’s charges on a date to be determined in U.S. District Court. He has pleaded not guilty to terrorism-related charges stemming from his arrest on September 14, 2012, when he allegedly attempted to detonate a purported explosive device. His trial on those charges is scheduled for April 7, 2014.
According to today’s indictment, in July 2012, Daoud was introduced to Individual A, an undercover FBI agent posing as a terrorist residing in New York, who would supply Daoud with an explosive device to use in a terrorist attack in Chicago. After he was arrested, Daoud learned that Individual A was an FBI agent. Between October 26 and November 29, 2012, Daoud allegedly solicited another person to use physical force to murder or attempt to murder the undercover agent.
The murder-for-hire count alleges that on November 28, 2012, Daoud caused another person to use a telephone with the intent of committing the murder Individual A in return for payment. The obstruction count alleges that between October 26 and November 29, 2012, Daoud attempted to kill Individual A to prevent the agent from attending and testifying in court.
The indictment was announced by Gary S. Shapiro, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert J. Shields, Jr., Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Barry Jonas and William Ridgway.
The solicitation count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison; murder-for-hire carries a maximum of 10 years; the obstruction of justice count carries a maximum of 30 years; and each count carries a maximum fine of $250,000. If convicted, the court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
An indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
