WASHINGTON:
A Muslim convert from New York pleaded guilty on Thursday for his role in threatening the writers of the satirical “South Park” television show for their depiction of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and to other criminal charges, the US Justice Department said.
It said Jesse Curtis Morton, who is also known as Younus Abdullah Muhammed, admitted his guilt at a federal court hearing in Alexandria, Virginia. He ran a website that encouraged Muslims to engage in violence against enemies of Islam.
Morton pleaded guilty to making threatening communications, using the Internet to put others in fear and using his position as leader of the Revolution Muslim organisation’s Internet sites to conspire to commit murder.
Morton worked on website postings with Zachary Chesser, a Virginia man who pleaded guilty in October 2010 to sending threatening communications to the writers of the comedy show and to other charges.
Morton, 33, was arrested in Rabat, Morocco, last year and brought back to the United States. He faces up to 15 years in prison when sentenced on May 18.
Morton admitted that he aided Chesser in taking repeated steps in April 2010 to encourage violent extremists to attack the South Park writers for the episode on the cable channel Comedy Central for sacrilegious parody.
Morton worked with Chesser to draft a message for the website about the South Park threats and they posted a final version of the statement on various extremist online forums.
Morton also conspired with Chesser and others to solicit the murder of an artist tied to the “Everyone Draw Mohammad Day” movement in May 2010, including posting online a magazine that included the artist in a hit list for violent extremists.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 10th, 2012.
COMMENTS (10)
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@Yuri Kondratyuk: Wrong forum to talk about Upanishads. I am not sure PAK ever heard of it. There is no such study as philosophy in PAK.
@Sagar:
An excellent point. That's the reason extremism had never got a strong foot hold in Hindusim. It's in it's nature to allow people criticize its conclusions (irrespective of theist or atheist view points). In fact, as Swami Vivekananda said, the upanishads openly challenge the world to disprove their assertions.
I think any religion, theory, doctrine or philosophy who doesn't allow to question itself, who claims i'm The Truth is the reason behind people getting extremist.
Credit South Park for at least one good thing --- one less bad guy walking the streets.
There is a history of violent, unbalanced people turning to Islam in the US. Malcolm X, Mike Tyson, Micheal Jackson are the few who come to mind. The trend continues.
@American:
Well, it depends on how peace is achieved. And these guys seek peace by killing all those who disagree with them.
Wonder why it is always the religion of peace doing this everytime. I see no Hindus Buddhists or Chinese doing this. And they ask why we resent the religion. Of peace in my country...
I am not sure when this "no drawing" concept crept into the islamic faith. Between 8-12 century several persian and Arab painters drew the picture of Mohamed and told stories of his adventure in pictorial form. There are several surviving pictures even today.
why these people behaving like this? whats their real problem? why they are acting as representatives of violence?
What's the punishment for ingratitude?