The federal government yesterday hit accused Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad with murder and extortion charges that could land him on death row.
The 20-count complaint filed in federal court in Greenbelt, Md., includes charges of discharging a firearm as part of an extortion scheme in seven fatal sniper attacks in Montgomery County and one in the District of Columbia. Muhammad, 41, is also charged with three non-fatal attacks.
Under federal law, if a firearm is used to commit violence as part of an extortion plot, the crime is punishable by death.
Because he left notes at two scenes threatening more murders unless he was paid $10 million, the alleged sniper is subject to capital punishment, prosecutors say.
The complaint also provides an inventory of the items found in Muhammad’s 1990 blue Chevrolet Caprice when he and teen sidekick John Lee Malvo were arrested – including a global positioning system cops believe helped them make quick back-road escapes from crime scenes.
Malvo, 17, was not named in the complaint. As a juvenile, he can be charged with a federal capital offense but cannot be executed.
Officials stressed that the new charges do not mean Muhammad will be tried first in federal court. The move is designed to allow the government to keep him in custody until it’s decided which jurisdiction has the best chance of getting a death-penalty conviction.
According to an FBI affidavit, the items seized from Muhammad’s car also include a brown, cotton glove that matches a glove found near the scene of the fatal attack on bus driver Conrad Johnson and a pair of bolt cutters that cops believe were used to cut through a fence after that murder.
Police also found a wallet containing drivers licenses with different names, all with Muhammad’s photo, and, on the ground outside the car, a paper towel covering a .223 caliber bullet.
Meanwhile, federal investigators, unhappy at the length of time it took them to crack the case, say the cornerstone of their investigation, the tip line, hurt as much as it helped.
What threw investigators most, said FBI special agent Larry Foust, was the huge number of tips about white vans – which led to further tips about white vans to the exclusion of almost all other information.
Still authorities had no choice but to go with that lead, Foust said.
Additional reporting by Brian Blomquist in Washington and Sam Smith in Fredericksburg, Va.
Global Positioning System: How it works
* The Global Positioning System uses a network of satellites that transmit high-frequency radio signals that can be picked up by a GPS receiver anywhere in the world, pinpointing an object’s exact location.
* The GPS receiver can be used as a reference point to find another location and map the route to it.
* Automakers now offer moving-map displays using GPS. They show the car’s location and a map of the roads surrounding it.
* A hand-held GPS receiver (like the one found in the car of accused Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad) can be hooked up to a laptop computer equipped with mapping software.
* During the Gulf War, in which Muhammad served, U.S. forces used more than 9,000 GPS units to help soldiers move and maneuver in sandstorms and at night.
Facing the rap
The charges filed yesterday in federal court against John Allen Muhammad include:
* Use of a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence, causing the death of a person.
* Conspiracy to affect interstate commerce by extortion and threats of physical violence.
* Affecting interstate commerce by extortion and threats of physical violence.
* Interstate transportation in aid of racketeering.
* Discharging a firearm in a school zone.