USA v. Suliman

 USA v. Suliman (Criminal Docket #: 1:21-cr-00006) 

Case Description:

Mohammad Suliman is a U.S.-born, Arab-American. Though highly intelligent, Mr. Suliman suffers from bipolar disorder. During a manic phase, Mr. Suliman attempted to travel to Syria in order to join ISIS, for whom he intended to work as a translator. Mr. Suliman’s attempt to cross into Syria was stopped by Turkish police who arrested him and later deported him to Egypt at his request. Mr. Suliman subsequently enrolled in school in India, where he was subsequently arrested at the U.S. embassy after responding to a request to come to the embassy. After arrest, Mr. Suliman slipped into deep depression and was found mentally unfit for trial for a period of almost four years. He was charged with 1 count: 

  • Count One: Violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 2339B(a)(1): Attempt to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. 

OUTCOME

Suliman accepted a plea agreement, and MLFA successfully argued that the terrorism enhancement did not apply, resulting in a sentence of 36 months in prison (time served) a lifetime of supervision after prison, and a$100 SMA. The Suliman case in the 11th Circuit along with the Alhaggagi case in the 9th Circuit have become two of the leading cases in non-applicability for the terrorism enhancement in material support cases.  

Client Name:  Mohammad Suliman
Case Name:  USA v. Suliman
Date Filed:  Indictment: 02/23/2021 

Plea Bargain accepted/Sentencing: 07/24/2023 
Date Closed:  Terminated: 10/26/2023 
Legal Department: National Security Criminal Defense Center 
Age: N/A
Gender:  Male
Race/Ethnicity:  Arab/Mauritanian 
Location:  Gainesville, Florida 
Occupation: Student
Issues:  The legal issue presented by Mr. Suliman’s conduct was whether provision of material support in the form of translation services qualified for the terrorism enhancement.  
MLFA’s Role At the request of Mr. Suliman’s privately retained counsel, Fritz Schuler, MLFA joined Mr. Suliman’s trial team as co-counsel. Thereafter, MLFA negotiated the factual basis for a plea and thereafter argued the non-applicability of the terrorism enhancement at the trial court level. MLFA also assistedMr. Schuler in preparing Mr. Suliman’s plea, colloquy, and sentencing statement.  
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