6 Men Got Terrorist Training, Pair Say

A father and son who are being held in a terror probe focused on the agricultural town of Lodi told the FBI that six other men from the area attended a terrorist training camp in Pakistan, according to classified documents obtained by the Sacramento Bee.

Hamid Hayat, 22, and his father, Umer, 47, both United States citizens, are charged with two counts of lying to federal investigators about the younger man’s time at an Al Qaeda-linked camp in 2003 and 2004. Their arrests are part of an investigation in Lodi that also led to immigration charges against two Muslim religious leaders and a son of one of the leaders.

The Hayats first denied any connection to the camp before cooperating with authorities, according to court records. According to the FBI, Umer Hayat admitted paying for his son’s flight to Pakistan and for the camp, run by the friend of Umer Hayat’s father-in-law.

The pair also told investigators that six others attended the camp, according to federal court documents obtained by the newspaper. There they were trained to target financial institutions and government buildings in the U.S., according to the documents.

The newspaper’s report contained no details about who the six people might be or their possible connections to Lodi, an agricultural town south of Sacramento. Most court documents related to the case remain under seal.

Spokeswomen for the FBI and the U.S. attorney’s office declined to comment, as did Hamid Hayat’s attorney, Wazhma Mojaddidi. Attorneys for Umer Hayat and the two religious leaders did not immediately return telephone messages Friday.

The Hayats have pleaded not guilty.