Tucson Refugees With Ties To Al-Shabab Terrorist Group Arrested For Immigration Fraud

A federal grand jury on August 8, 2018, returned an eleven-count indictment against Mohamed Abdirahman Osman, and Zeinab Abdirahman Mohamed, for violations of false swearing in an immigration matter and false statements to a government agency.

According to the indictment, Osman, age 28, and Mohamed, age 25, while living in China, applied for and were granted refugee status in 2014. The husband and wife entered the United States and have been living in Tucson since the time of their entry. In June 2015, Osman and Mohamed submitted applications for Legal Permanent Residence Status to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The indictment further alleges that material submitted in support of their refugee applications and their applications for Legal Permanent Residence Status contained false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements. The alleged fraudulent statements included Osman’s true name and nationality and denial of his association with members of al-Shabab, a designated terrorist organization. Both defendants were arrested on Aug. 10, 2018.

Osman told authorities he sustained injuries in a terrorist attack in Somalia. However, Osman had been hurt while handling explosives, according to the indictment.

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