CBN’s Erick Stakelbeck and Daveed Gartenstein-Ross of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies went down to North Carolina to find out more about accused Tarheel jihadist Daniel Boyd. Here is what they found. “CBN News Uncovers New Details about Alleged North Carolina Terrorist Ringleader,” by Erick Stakelbeck of CBN News, August 18:
How Much Did the Local Muslim Community Know About Boyd?
This is the key question. We know that Boyd apparently split from his local mosque because its views were not extreme enough. We also know that at least one man who frequented the mosque had concerns about Boyd’s views””concerns which he says were ignored.
I spoke at length, off the record, to a Muslim who is very plugged in to Raleigh’s Islamic community. This Muslim gave a troubling portrait of Boyd, saying that he spoke “openly” and frequently among fellow Muslims about the need to wage violent jihad. The source described Boyd’s views as “very strong,” particularly concerning the U.S. troop presence in Iraq and Afghanistan and the Israeli/Palestinian issue. Boyd was a “charismatic” figure, according to the source, and his experience in the Afghan jihad in the late 1980″s and early 90″s gave him “street cred” among young, impressionable Muslims. Like the neighborhood kids, young Muslims gravitated towards Boyd and looked up to him””especially those from dysfunctional backgrounds. Some of the young men who were indicted along with Boyd reportedly fit this description.
Boyd talked about his Afghanistan experiences “all the time” and was very social. “He liked to talk,” the source said. Whereas Boyd’s neighbors expressed shock at his arrest, the Muslim source””who knew Boyd’s theological views and passion for jihad well– said that “it is hard to argue with anything that is in that indictment.” […]
In short, the radical Islamist, pro-jihad worldview of Daniel Boyd was no secret among Raleigh’s Muslims. He wore it on his sleeve. Boyd’s views led to theological arguments with some Muslims who disagreed with them. But at the end of the day, according to my source, American Muslim communities are very insular and all too often have a “code of silence” when it comes to their own. It is unclear whether a local Muslim or Muslims assisted authorities in the Boyd investigation. I suspect that was the case, and if true, that is obviously a very positive thing. But the fact remains that Boyd was able to build an eight-member terror cell that was allegedly training for attacks overseas and quite possibly on U.S soil as well. And Raleigh’s Muslims can’t say they were not warned. The signs were certainly there when it came to Daniel Boyd.
There is much more. Read it all.