Muslim Airline Mechanic Pleads Guilty to Sabotaging Plane

Abdul-Majeed Marouf Ahmed Alani, the American Airlines mechanic with possible ties to Muslim extremists, pleaded guilty Wednesday to sabotaging a plane.

Alani entered the plea in Miami federal court. He previously admitted to investigators that he committed the sabotage, insisting it was an attempt to gain overtime to fix the American Airlines jet — which he did. . .

Alani, 60, is a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Iraq who had been an airline mechanic for 30 years. Prosecutors say he has a brother in Iraq who may be involved with the Islamic State extremist group and that he had made statements wishing Allah would use “divine powers” to harm non-Muslims.

Investigators said Alani also had Islamic State videos on his phone depicting mass murders and that he traveled to Iraq in March but did not disclose that to the FBI after his arrest.

Despite that evidence, Alani was never charged with any terrorism-related crime. He pleaded guilty to attempted destruction of an aircraft, which carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. Alani will likely get less prison time when he is sentenced March 4. (Read more from “Muslim Airline Mechanic Pleads Guilty to Sabotaging Plane” HERE)

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