The video of the fatal shooting of Usaama Rahim by a Joint Terrorism Task Force at a CVS in Boston has been released by officials, announced the Suffolk DA. The Joint Terrorism Task Force consisted of both FBI agents and Boston PD. Rahim had been the focus of the Task Force after alleged online interactions between him and ISIS-affiliated agents were discovered.
DA says traditionally evidence released at end of investigation, but to prevent rumors, video being released today. http://t.co/1qF7fFP5rR
— necn (@NECN) June 8, 2015
Following his death, African-Americans and Muslim activists took to the internet to write incendiary posts against the police, alleging that Rahim was on his cell phone when he was shot in the back. Boston police commissioner, William Evans, and the Suffolk County district attorney, Daniel F. Conley, vowed to release surveillance video of the shooting as soon as possible to show that this was not the case and that Rahim had lunged at officers with a knife. The video was shown to Muslim community leaders and Rahim’s family first. The New York Times writes:
Abdullah Faaruuq, an imam at the Mosque for the Praising of Allah in Boston, who watched the video, called it “inconclusive” because he could not see whether Mr. Rahim had brandished a knife. He agreed on the crucial point: “He wasn’t shot in the back.” But he told reporters Thursday that whatever bad decisions Mr. Rahim may have made, they did not warrant his death.
According to FBI press releases, Rahim had been under surveillance for some time and had intentions to decapitate police officers and plotted to kill anti-Islamization activist Pamela Geller. CNN reports:
Geller drew national attention last month after an off-duty police officer working security thwarted an attack at her organization’s contest for Prophet Mohammed drawings in Garland, Texas. She’s president of the American Freedom Defense Initiative, which includes subsidiary programs Stop Islamization of America and Stop Islamization of Nations.
Watch the video above.