Brother of San Bernardino terrorist, 2 others arrested
Three people linked to the couple whose December shooting rampage in San Bernardino left 14 people dead were arrested Thursday on conspiracy, marriage fraud and other charges.
The three include Syed Raheel Farook, brother of Syed Rizwan Farook who with his wife, Tashfeen Malik, also wounded 22 people before both died in a police shootout.
Raheel Farook, 31, his wife, Tatiana Farook, 31, and her sister Mariya Chernynk were named in a five-count indictment describing a scheme designed to allow Chernykh to remain in the U.S. Chernykh, 26, is married to Enrique Marquez, Jr., who has been awaiting trial since December on charges of conspiring with Rizwan Farook in 2011 and 2012 to provide material support to terrorists.
Malik and Rizwan Farook opened fire at a holiday party at San Bernardino's Inland Regional Center on Dec. 2. Syed Rizwan Farook had worked as an environmental health specialist for San Bernardino County for five years and had been at the party with his co-workers before leaving and returning with his wife, four guns and a bomb.
FBI Director James Comey described the couple as "homegrown violent extremists" who had become radicalized over a period of years but were not part of a foreign militant group. The Islamic State claimed the man-and-wife team, who left behind a 6-month-old daughter, were supporters of the organization.
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All the latest charges stem from the investigation into the attack, U.S. Attorney Eileen Decker said in a statement.
“This is the latest step in the comprehensive investigation into the horrific attacks in San Bernardino,” Decker said. “We owe the victims and the entire community of San Bernardino a thorough investigation that uncovers all criminal activity surrounding these events."
The investigation determined that Marquez agreed to marry Chernykh so she could obtain immigration benefits otherwise not available to her because she is a Russian citizen without legal status in the United States. Marquez, in addition to the terror-related counts, also is charged with marriage fraud and making a false statement on immigration documents related to an alleged sham marriage.
The indictment alleges Marquez received money from Chernykh to enter into the sham marriage.
Raheel Farook and Tatiana Farook conspired by witnessing Marquez and Chernykh’s wedding, taking staged family pictures of Marquez and Chernykh, establishing a joint checking account for the couple and creating a back-dated lease for Marquez and Chernykh to create the illusion that they shared a marital residence.
The indictment charges all three in a conspiracy to knowingly make false statements under oath with respect to immigration documents, a charge that carries a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison. Chernykh also faces a charge of document fraud, perjury and two counts of lying to federal agents. Those charges carry a combined maximum sentence of 25 years.
In February, the FBI conducted an hours-long search of Raheel Farook's home in Corona, Calif. Authorities declined to reveal the target of the search or what was found. Later that month the case made national news again when the Justice Department went to court trying to force Apple to break into Rizwan Farook's iPhone. The FBI ultimately paid an outside party more than $1.3 million to hack the phone.
