FATHER AND SON CONVICTED IN MURDER FOR HIRE PLOT FROM PRISON

MICHAEL J. GARCIA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and MARK J. MERSHON, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), announced the conviction of MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR and OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR on charges that they conspired together to arrange for a murder for hire while MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR was incarcerated in a federal detention facility in Manhattan. The defendants were convicted late yesterday in
Manhattan federal court, following a two-week jury trial before United States District Judge PETER K. LEISURE, of conspiracy to commit murder for hire, murder for hire, and conspiracy to commit extortion.

According to the evidence at trial and the Indictment, in August 2005, MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR approached an individual in prison who–- unbeknownst to OZSUSAMLAR–- was and is cooperating with the Government (the “CW”). OZSUSAMLAR told the CW about a man (the “Victim”) who owed OZSUSAMLAR approximately $283,000 and
then asked the CW whether or not he knew of someone who could kill the Victim. MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR also told the CW that the Victim’s children could be kidnapped and said he would pay the killer ten percent of the money collected from the Victim.

The trial evidence further established that on August 26, 2005, MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR gave the CW a piece of paper with handwritten information on it. The information included the name of the Victim, the name of the Victim’s wife, and their business address. The paper also contained the name of one of MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR’s sons in Turkey and had the amount “$283,000”-- supposedly the amount of money owed by the Victim– written on it. At around this time, MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR and his son OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR spoke repeatedly over the telephone from the jail where MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR was held about the Victim and OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR’s attempts to find the Victim’s address.

According to the trial evidence and the Indictment, an undercover FBI agent was then introduced as an associate of the CW. The CW provided the undercover agent’s contact information to MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR, who in turn provided it to OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR. OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR then had a number of telephone
calls and a meeting with the undercover agent concerning collecting the debt from the Victim and then having the Victim murdered. During those conversations, the undercover agent asked OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR if he should take care of the Victim (meaning kill the Victim) after collecting the debt but leave the Victim’s wife alone, and OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR responded that it did not matter. Additionally, the undercover agent told OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR that “his people” would make it look like a robbery and would
“kill” both the Victim and the Victim’s wife, to which OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR responded that he understood.

According to public documents, MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR was convicted in May 2004 after a jury trial in the Southern District of New York of numerous charges of bribery, identification document fraud, and unlawful transportation of illegal aliens, relating to his participation in a conspiracy to bribe a public official to fraudulently provide identification documents to illegal aliens. MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR had also previously been convicted in September 1995 after a trial in the District of New Jersey on numerous immigration and naturalization offenses stemming from his running of a Turkish alien smuggling ring and his holding a woman hostage at his home in Paterson, New Jersey. MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR’s sentencing on his May 2004 convictions is scheduled for May 12, 2006 before the Honorable KIMBA M. WOOD. MUSTAFA OZSUSMALAR is detained at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan.

MUSTAFA OZSUSAMLAR, 62, was a resident of Paterson, New Jersey and Manhattan until his arrest in December 2001 on other federal charges filed in the District of Columbia which remain pending. OSMAN OZSUSAMLAR, 34, was a resident of Paterson, New Jersey until his arrest in October 2005.

Judge LEISURE scheduled sentencing for both defendants for June 21, 2006 at 10:00 a.m. Both defendants face a total maximum sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment.

Mr. GARCIA praised the outstanding efforts of the FBI in the investigation of this case.

Assistant United States Attorneys MIRIAM ROCAH and ALEXANDER H. SOUTHWELL are in charge of the prosecution.