Siddiqui's attorney said she had no connection to Akram.Īkram was from the English industrial city of Blackburn. Though he did not name the prisoner, other law enforcement officials have identified her as Aafia Siddiqui, who is serving an 86-year prison sentence after being convicted of shooting at American military personnel after being detained in Afghanistan. During negotiations, Akram demanded the release of that prisoner in exchange for letting the hostages free. “This was both a hate crime and an act of terrorism,” DeSarno said.ĭeSarno said Akram is believed to have selected the synagogue because it is closest to a federal prison in nearby Fort Worth that houses a “convicted terrorist” with suspected al-Qaida links. The act, he said, “was committed by a terrorist espousing an anti-Semitic worldview." 15 that the hostage-taker was focused on an issue not specifically connected to the Jewish community, took pains Friday to stress that the FBI regarded the episode as an act of terrorism that threatened the Jewish community and “intentionally targeted” a house of worship. The medical examiner determined that Akram died at 9:22 p.m.ĭeSarno, who had attracted attention for saying on Jan. The Tarrant County Medical examiner on Friday said Akram was killed by multiple gunshot wounds and ruled his death a homicide, a determination that does not necessarily indicate it was a crime. “We were constantly looking for an opportunity to leave,” Cytron-Walker said.Īs the moment came, the FBI rushed in and fatally shot Akram, DeSarno said. Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker said Friday that while Akram had a drink in his hand, he threw a chair at Akram and he and the two other remaining hostages fled. but those remaining said he became more belligerent and threatening as the night wore on. As agents approached the building, he said, they encountered the three remaining hostages running out and continued moving toward the synagogue to face Malik Faisal Akram, the 44-year-old British citizen who had taken four hostages during morning services at Congregation Beth Israel in the Dallas-area suburb of Colleyville.Īkram had released a hostage shortly after 5 p.m.
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