Queens man: FBI waited a week after tip
A Queens man pleading guilty Thursday in federal court in Brooklyn to making up a phony story last year about a terror plot told the judge that it took the FBI a week to meet with him after he first contacted them.
"A week later?" interjected a surprised U.S. District Judge Sterling Johnson.
The exchange came during a plea by Syed Ali, who admitted that he was lying when he first approached the FBI in May with information that three associates were planning an attack, and that one was going to Pakistan for training.
Ali, 25, was charged with lying to the FBI in October after he failed a polygraph test and admitted he had made up the whole thing. In response to a question from Johnson about his motives, Ali's lawyer told the judge that the situation would be explained at Ali's sentencing, scheduled for May 19.
Ali, who is free pending sentencing, faces up to 5 years in jail as well as restitution to the government for the expense of the wild goose chase he triggered. Sentencing guidelines call for him to serve up to 6 months.
In court papers, prosecutors said that Ali made up the story because he had a "personal conflict" with one of the men he fingered and wanted to get him in trouble.
During his guilty plea, Ali said he first contacted the FBI in an e-mail. He received a call the next day from the FBI in Washington, but it wasn't until a week later that he was contacted and asked to meet with agents at Federal Plaza in New York City.
A New York FBI spokesman said Thursday that the agency was not sitting on its hands after getting the tip and immediately began work to check it out.
"As soon as the FBI became aware of the issue, an extensive investigation began to fully identify Ali and any associates. Extensive time, resources and assets were expended during the investigation," spokesman Richard Kolko said.
"Some investigations begin with an interview and some end with an interview. The investigation determined this was all a lie, and . . . it's important to stress that Ali and his lies used up a lot of FBI assets and time - time that could have been better spent on investigating real cases."
