PHOENIX – A Phoenix man, Abdul Khabir Wahid, was sentenced to prison for making a false statement to the FBI during an investigation of the Muhammad Art Exhibit and Contest in Garland, Texas in 2015.
Wahid was sentenced to 67 months in prison for making a false statement to the FBI during the investigation and tampering with a witness. Wahid was also sentenced to three years of supervised release to follow his prison term.
Wahid waived a jury trial.
According to the Department of Justice, the evidence presented at trial showed that Wahid lied during the FBI investigation of ISIS-related attack in Garland.
It was Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi who drove from Arizona to Texas to conduct the attack. They stopped their car near the contest location, and began firing semiautomatic rifles at security personnel and law enforcement officers. One of their bullets struck and injured a security guard. Police officers shot and killed Simpson and Soofi during the firefight.
Wahid did not travel to Texas and was not involved in the attack.
Just days before the attack, on May 1, 2015, Simpson instructed Wahid to deliver a key and an envelope to a third person. During a May 6, 2015, interview with FBI agents, Wahid lied and concealed those facts, despite having delivered the key and envelope as instructed by Simpson.
Trial testimony revealed the FBI would have pursued additional avenues of investigation had Wahid truthfully disclosed the information, but was unable to do so in a timely manner. Also, between May 4 and July 8, 2015, Wahid tried to persuade Soofi’s brother not to speak with the FBI, to lie about seeing Simpson and Soofi with guns, and to lie about observing ISIS propaganda videos in Simpson and Soofi’s apartment.