Early life and education Hashmi was born in
Karachi,
Pakistan, in 1980. He emigrated with his family to the United States when he was three years old. His family settled in
Flushing, New York, where he was raised and attended school. He graduated from Robert F Wagner High School in 1998 and then attended
SUNY Stony Brook. Hashmi eventually transferred to
Brooklyn College, where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 2003. A devout
Muslim, he proselytized for Islam and was a political activist on campus. In 2003 he enrolled at
London Metropolitan University in England to pursue a master's degree in
International Relations, which he received in 2006.
Arrest and terrorism charges On June 6, 2006, he was arrested at
Heathrow Airport based on an indictment from an American federal grand jury. The charges were for conspiring to send money and military gear to al Qaeda associates in Pakistan. He was housed as a Category A-high security prisoner at
HM Prison Belmarsh while fighting extradition to the United States. In March 2007, the
High Court of England and Wales ruled against him. He was then extradited to the United States in May 2007 and arraigned before District Judge
Loretta A. Preska. Hashmi was held for pre-trial detention in 23-hour
solitary confinement under
special administrative measures at
Metropolitan Correction Center in
Manhattan. By the time his trial date approached in April 2010, he had been held in isolation for nearly three years.
Guilty plea On April 27, 2010, one day before his trial was to start, Hashmi pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to provide material support to al-Qaeda in Federal District Court in Manhattan. He was asked by Judge
Loretta A. Preska whether he was pleading "because you are in fact guilty" to which Hashmi replied, "Alhamdulillah, yes." Attorneys on both sides recommended a maximum prison term of 15 years. After the hearing one of Hashmi’s lawyers, David Ruhnke said that "[Hashmi] made the best deal that was available under the circumstances," adding that "[h]e stepped up and accepted responsibility. The government wanted to lock him up for the rest of his life. They will not succeed in that goal." ==References==