The fourth man from the United Kingdom who illegally entered Maine in April was sentenced Tuesday morning.
Mohammed Sultan Saleh, 22, of Great Britain was sentenced to time served in U.S. District Court of Maine in Bangor. He was arrested April 3 and pleaded guilty June 18 to one felony count of false statement to a federal official and one misdemeanor charge of entry without inspection.
Saleh and three other men were walking through heavily wooded terrain along the Quebec-Somerset County border in the pre-dawn hours of April 3 when they entered the U.S. within a few hundred yards of the Saint Zacharie port of entry.
The men were found after maple sugar workers called U.S. Customs and Border Protection because they saw four men who “did not appear to be locals,” walking on the Golden Road, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel Casey said.
Saleh and two men are of Yemeni descent, while the fourth is of Pakistani descent, Casey said.
Saleh denied knowing he had entered the U.S. and told officers they were out for a morning hike, Casey said.
A video taken by Saleh shows them announcing that they have arrived on U.S. soil.
“My initial instinct was just a group of dumb young people trying to sneak into the country … they’re filming themselves doing it,” Casey said.
However, videos like that are frequently taken by active terrorists in their final hours before committing a “destructive act,” Casey said he learned from the FBI.
There is no proof the men were coming into the country to commit violence, Casey said. Instead Saleh had a job waiting in New York City, as did the other men.
The FBI and Homeland Security were justified in their concern about potential terrorism, but there is absolutely no evidence that is a concern after an extensive investigation, Casey said.
“I accept full responsibility and I apologize to the United States,” Saleh said.
The three other men have also been sentenced. Ali Mohammed Ali Abdullah, Hameed Mohammed Nagi and Ibrahim Ayyub Khan were all sentenced to time served after they pleaded guilty to similar charges.
Saleh will remain in custody of the U.S. Marshal Service until his deportation back to the U.K.