Syed Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27, the suspects responsible for the San Bernardino Islamic terror attack. (Photos: AP/EPA)
DEVELOPING: The FBI has arrested three relatives of Syed Farook, the Islamic terrorist who killed 14 people with his wife in the San Bernardino attack in December. The charges are numerous and include conspiracy and marriage fraud.
While multiple questions were raised about several family members following the horrific attack, the arrests don’t appear to be related to them. The FBI sources involved say one charge was related to a marriage-for-citizenship scam allegedly enacted between Enrique Marquez, Jr. and Mariya Chernykh.
Marquez, who was previously arrested and currently in jail awaiting trial for conspiring with one of the San Bernardino terrorists, Syed Rizwan Farook, is also accused of supplying weapons to Farook and his wife.
Those separate terror plots related to Marquez never materialized. However, Marquez’s wife, Mariya Chernykh, 26, is charged with fraud and misuse of visa, permits and other documents. She’s also accused of perjury and two counts of making false statements to federal agents, stemming from previous interviews with the FBI.
Tatiana Farook, 31, Chernykh’s sister, as well as her husband Syed Raheel Farook, 31, who is also Syed Rizwan Farook’s brother, were also arrested. Chernykh and Tatiana Farook are Russian, not Middle Eastern immigrants.
The FBI said in a statement that Tatiana and Syed Raheel Farook “participated in the [marriage] conspiracy by, among other things, witnessing Marquez ad Chernykh’s wedding, taking staged family pictures of Maruqez and Chernykh” and other actions.
