Hussein Sobhe Borhot, 36, has pleaded guilty to involvement in terrorist activities outside of Canada and to committing a crime under the leadership of a terrorist organization. Borhot crossed into Syria from May 2013 to June 2014, after secretly crossing the border from Turkey with the help of a paid Turkish soldier to allow ISIS fighters to cross. The RCMP worked with the FBI and the Department of Defense throughout the seven-year investigation.
“I did not know better”
When he returned to Calgary, Borgot was the subject of two covert operations, telling an officer that he had been inspired by the Call of Duty first-person shooter video game. Defense attorney Rame Katrib, along with prosecutors Kent Brown and Domenic Puglia, negotiated the objection in two of the four charges Borhot faced. On Thursday, Queen’s Bench Judge David Labrenz accepted the allegations and adjourned the case to next month for a sentencing hearing. Borhot will remain on bail, under strict conditions pending sentencing. When Labrenz asked Borhot if he admitted to the facts of the case, the perpetrator said he did, but added: “I did not know better.” The maximum penalty for the second offense is life imprisonment, although lawyers have not said what they will seek. Details of Borhot’s crimes come from an agreed statement of facts, read aloud by Puglia.
Original design: suicide bomber
The agreed statement does not detail how he was recruited to fight for ISIS, but begins with Borhot boarding a plane in Calgary on May 9, 2013, bound for Turkey. According to the document, Borhot did not tell his wife or father his plans to travel to Syria. He used a $ 3,500 prepaid credit card to book his flights. From Turkey, Borhot went to Syria, where he “did a lot of training” and received weapons, including grenades and an AK-47. At first, Borhot told the undercover officer that he wanted to become a suicide bomber, but changed his mind and became a fighter. During his military training, Borhot impressed his leader with his sniper skills, ranking second among trainees.
The kidnappings
At one point, while the undercover officer was having dinner, Borhot told him about a time he was traveling to a village with the ISIS group and abducting opposition fighters he believed to be in the Free Syrian Army. But the next day, back at his camp, Borhot said he was told by his leader to return one of the victims who was considered “innocent”. During this mission, Borhot himself was abducted. ISIS then negotiated a prisoner exchange, and Borhot returned to his team. During the two covert operations, which took place between 2016 and 2020, Borhot told the officer that he would not kill anyone who did not try to kill him, but also said that he “loved the shootings and the jihad.”
“Many died”
In the first operation – which lasted more than two years, which took place between October 2016 and December 2018 – an RCMP officer befriended Borhot in a mosque. The two discussed “innocent issues” such as work, politics and religion, according to the agreed statement of facts. They exchanged telephone numbers and spoke via text message, telephone and in person. The officer told Borhot that he supported religious fundamentalists in his country. Three months after the affair, Borhot began talking about his role as an ISIS fighter. Borhot revealed that “many died” during his stay in Syria and was thrilled to describe the fighting, according to the officer.
Borhot said he would be back
Borhot said that if he had a chance to return, he would do it: “for religion, anything.” The suspected terrorist also confirmed a news item that presented him and described the ISIS recruitment form, which had been received by CBC News. On March 11, 2016, CBC’s Adrienne Arsenault reported that the ISIS bureaucracy had revealed six Canadian names. Following this report, the RCMP found that one of the ISIS documents, a recruitment form for the terrorist organization, described Borhot. It included his name, nickname, mother’s name, date of birth, point of entry, previous occupation (pipe installer) and Calgary telephone numbers.
Call of Duty
The form also showed that between a fighter, a suicide bomber or an inghimasi (trained guerrillas waiting to be killed), the choice of Borhot’s military designation was “fighter”. Four years later, the FBI released RCMP Borhot’s exit form from ISIS. He stated that he had left the terrorist group on May 30, 2014, after a final mission as a fighter in the province of Homs. The first covert operation ended with the officer telling Borhot that he had to return to his country due to increased control by the RCMP. This officer reappeared in 2020 and the relationship rekindled as Borhot helped the officer create Call of Duty on his Playstation. He referred to the video game as “good training” and said the parts were like a real battle. By July 2020, investigators had everything they needed and charged Borhot with terrorism. Two months later, Borhot’s cousin Jamal Borhot was also charged with felony criminal mischief. A trial date has not yet been set and he will appear in court again on May 13.
