EARNEST JAMES UJAAMA SENTENCED FOR CONSPIRING
TO SUPPLY GOODS AND SERVICES TO THE TALIBAN

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Attorney General John Ashcroft, Assistant Attorney General Christopher A. Wray of the Criminal Division, and U.S. Attorney John McKay of the Western District of Washington announced today that Earnest James Ujaama was sentenced to two years in prison, following his conviction on a charge of conspiring to provide goods and services to the Taliban, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

Ujaama entered a guilty plea to the charge on April 14, 2003.

Ujaama, of Seattle, Washington, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Barbara J. Rothstein, at federal court in Seattle. In addition to the two-year prison term, Ujaama will be placed on supervised release for a period of three years. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Ujaama has been cooperating fully with the government in ongoing terrorism investigations.

“As part of our war on terror, the cooperation of insiders with direct knowledge of the activities of dangerous terrorists could help us save innocent American lives,” said Attorney General Ashcroft. “Earnest James Ujaama pled guilty and accepted responsibility for his criminal conduct, agreeing to cooperate fully with our fight to disrupt future terrorist activity and apprehend other terrorists who threaten our safety and security. Our highest priority is to disrupt the networks of terror, and the information gained from individuals like Ujaama helps us protect innocent Americans from terrorist attacks.”

The Ujaama investigation was conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, the Criminal Division at the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Seattle Joint Terrorism Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew R. Hamilton and Todd Greenberg, and Trial Attorney George Z. Toscas of the Criminal Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

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