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wom LH Oxpiau June 24, 2003 MEMORANDUM To: Commissioners From: Philip Zelikow Subj ‘The FBI Informant in San Diego This issue is separate from the question of Saudi government involvement with the 9/11 plot or plotters, but is also sensitive. As background, please read the FBI report prepared for the Commission, "PENTTBOM Investigation: San Diego,” 29 May 2003. This 66 year-old fown and that Re can live out his Tie Tahis home community. ‘The FBI's dilemma is that they do not want (o force him into the program. Yet they cannot go public with this story without putting “Muppet” in even greater danger. The story presents two questions for the Commission. First, is there any credible evidence that “Muppet” was a knowing participant in the plot? ‘The best theory seems to be that “Muppet” met Hazmi and Mihdar at the mosque (the Islamic Center of San Diego that “Muppet” had helped found in 1985; though he had lost effective control over it years earlier), that he may have met them there in February 2000, and that he then gave them his address as a place they could stay. Hazmi and Mihdar moved in sometime in the summer of 2000, From the evidence available so far, none of the FBI agents who have interacted directly with “Muppet” harbor any suspicions about him.' Certainly “Muppet” appears to have cooperated fully with the FBI’s subsequent investigations, The FBI acknowledges various discrepancies in "Muppet’s” accounts of his relationships with the hijackers, but does not find them sinister. "To gain some added color and deals on varios agents” Fistshand judgment of “Muppet se the Join Lnguiryimerview repons (in Commission files) for Steven Bute (16 Augest 2002 and 23 August 2002): Christopher Meyers (22 August 2002); John Sylvester (26 August 2002); Kathleen Hayenbach (26 August 2002); and Steven Hancock (15 August 232” You will har dirty fom Rick Lamberton is impressions. SECRETS CONHESON-SENSHEREE— For example, “Muppet’s” neighbors have’ said he introduced Hazmi and Mihdar 4s sons of friends in Saudi Arabia, which is inconsistent with his story of just meeting them at the mosque. Also, as the FBI points out, “Muppet” insists that he never met Hani Hanjour, although the FBI thinks he may indeed have met birt, perhaps just briefly, before Hanjour, Hazmi, and Mihdat left San Diego for Arizona M_ There are also allegations that " Muppet” did not tell his case agent, Steve Butler, about facts that seem interesting in retrospect, like Hazmi’s and Mihdar’s reliance on prepaid phone cards or other signs of secretive behavior, or about Hazmi's scornful reference to Bayoumi as a "Saudi spy.” or about some of Hazmi's other contacts, But there is no evidence that “Muppet” hid such information from bis handler. This brings us to the second major question about this topic. Second, were the FBI case agents (primarily Steve Butler) negligent or simply inattantive in not learning more about Hazmi or Mihdar from “Muppet?” Was this a lost opportunity to disrupt the 9/11 plot? a et Butler's conduct has been criticized, In the context of what was known or knowable in 2000, it is actually not easy — at least from the evidence now available ~- to second-guess Butler's handling of “Muppet.” Itis also difficult to find threads that could credibly have produced a disruption of the plot, given the information available to the FBI in San Diego at the time. 1 Butler and his supervisors in countetrrosism wor in Sa Diego were clearly emphasizing investigations and information ibou ferons groups Such aff ts sources of support especie But further mvestigation might yield insight about (1) whether 100 Much emphasis ‘was placed on| Jertorism as opposed to Al Qaida, or (2) whether counterterrorism in general did not receive sufficient priority or resources in, watching this very large Muslim community, of (3) whether FBI invesugatons were unduly construined by restictions on satel gence work targeting te om ‘The Commission will need to decide whether “Muppet” should be a target for further investigation, including whether to conduct its own direct interview, with “Muppet.” The Joint Inquiry's initial effort to conduct such an interview, preparing’a subpoena for this purpose, produced defensive reactions from the FB.and a communication with an attorney who began talking about immunity issues, Dana Lese mann, Michael Jacobson, and Barbara Grewe provided essential input for this, memo.

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