According to ABC News, a federal jury has convicted a newly arrived Afghan refugee of sexually assaulting a 3-year-old girl who was housed at Quantico Marine Corps Base. The assault occurred shortly after the Biden Administration’s evacuation of Afghanistan.
24-year-old Mohammed Tariq was found guilty of sexual assault by the jury during a trial held at the US District Court in Alexandria.
“Tariq tried to explain through interpreters that his conduct was acceptable in his culture. Efforts to have his statements suppressed were rejected by the judge,” the report said.
Tariq, who was brought to Virginia following the evacuation alongside over 70,000 others, is scheduled for sentencing on April 26th.
According to another report in October of last year, another Afghan refugee, Zabihullah Mohmand, was charged with the rape of a teen girl in Missoula, MT.
After questioning Mohmand’s immigration status, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte issued a statement confirming that the sexual assault suspect had been resettled in the state by the US State Department.
This incident is one of several involving the newly arrived refugees resettled in the US following the botched evacuation of Afghanistan in August.
According to ABC News affiliate KVIA, the FBI is investigating the assault of a female Fort Bliss soldier by several male Afghan refugees at the Army’s Doña Ana Complex camp where thousands are currently being housed.
“We can confirm a female service member supporting Operation Allies Welcome reported being assaulted on Sept. 19 by a small group of male evacuees at the Doña Ana Complex in New Mexico,” Fort Bliss Public Affairs said in an emailed statement.
The news comes after reports about two other newly arrived Afghan evacuees who were charged with federal crimes, including the sexual assault of children while being housed at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin.
Bahrullah Noori has been charged with one count of attempting to engage in a sexual act with a minor, and three counts of engaging in a sexual act with a minor. The indictment alleges that the victims were younger than 16.
Another refugee, Mohammad Haroon Imaad, was charged with assaulting his spouse by strangling and suffocating her. The indictment indicates that the assault occurred on September 7, 2021.
According to another report, U.S. officials are looking into allegations that in the evacuation of Afghan refugees, older men were admitted together with young girls they claimed as their “brides.”
The Washington Times also reports that a man who had been convicted of rape and deported from the U.S. was allowed to board an Afghan evacuation flight and reach the state of Idaho.
New Mexico Republican Rep. Yvette Herrell expressed concern after visiting refugees housed at Holloman Air Force Base in her congressional district. Herrell said military officials could not provide basic facts about those living at the base.
“Unfortunately, I left Holloman Air Force Base with more questions than answers. High ranking military brass and officials from Homeland Security and the State Department could not provide facts about the identities of those in the ‘Village,’” Herrell said.
“They did not know (or would not say) how many were U.S. citizens, how many were Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants, or how many were merely people that made it onto our airplanes.
“Even more importantly, they could not say how many refugees had roles serving alongside U.S. forces,” the congresswoman added.
