A ‘misunderstood’ Islamic State groomer who convinced an Australian teenager to become a suicide bomber will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Mirsad Kandik, 40, was sentenced to life in prison for terrorism and his role in the death of 18-year-old Jack Bilardi in New York on Saturday.
Bilardi shocked Australia with a suicide bombing in Ramadi, central Iraq, about 110 kilometers west of Baghdad, and 1,300 kilometers from his home in Melbourne in March 2015.
After Bilardi’s mother died of cancer, he was radicalized by the terrorist group in his bedroom after meeting an ISIS mastermind online.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Candic fought the allegations, which he described as ‘discrimination and Islamophobia’, and maintained that he was not aware of any US laws he had broken.
Mirsad Kandik, 40, (pictured) was sentenced to life in prison on Saturday in New York on charges related to terrorism and his role in the death of 18-year-old Jack Bilardi.
Bilardi (pictured) shocked Australia in a March 2015 suicide bombing in Ramadi, central Iraq, about 110km west of Baghdad, and 1,300km from his home in Melbourne.
Kandik was made a villain, he told a New York court before sentencing.
‘I’m not a violent person, I’ve never been a violent person,’ Candic told the court.
‘I have never harmed anyone and have no intention of doing so.’
He apologized to the court and to ‘anyone who was offended or hurt by me’.
‘For what I have done… I seek forgiveness and repent to my Lord 100 times a day,’ he said.
Candic was told that his teenage radicalization was ‘evil’ and that his beliefs had turned towards sadism.
‘It’s taking someone’s beliefs and turning them into hate and murder,’ New York Eastern District Judge Nicholas Garaufis told the Brooklyn court.
‘We have an obligation to say never again, no more – that it won’t happen on our watch.
‘Jacques Bilardi didn’t deserve to die and he didn’t deserve to kill anyone. He deserves to be spared at 18 – a chance to be an adult, deal with his problems and be a member of his community.’
Before the sentence was read out in court, Mr Garoufis asked Candic if he was prepared to hear it only for the room to fall silent.
‘I’m not going to wait for an answer,’ Mr Garoufis said before sentencing Candy to life in prison.
Candic was a high-ranking member of ISIS responsible for recruiting foreign radicals and sending them to fight in Syria.
An investigation revealed how Bilardi became Candic’s target and how he trafficked the teenager to the Middle East before planning what Bilardi described as a ‘hugely coordinated’ suicide mission.
Bilardi also received numerous phone calls from distraught family members who pleaded with the teenager to reconsider his new faith.
After the sentencing, the court was told that Candic never showed remorse for the bombing in Ramadi and how radicalized Bilardi was before it was a powerful shot at ISIS and promoted by Assistant US Attorney Matthew Hagans.
Mr Hagons continued: ‘What Bilardi did after he was trafficked by this defendant, was inspired by this defendant, encouraged by this defendant.’
After Bilardi’s mother died of cancer, he was radicalized by the terrorist group in his bedroom after meeting an ISIS mastermind online.
About seven months after arriving in the Middle East, Bilardi blew himself up in a suicide mission targeting Iraqi armed forces in Ramadi.
Candic recruited hundreds of foreigners to fight for his terrorist cause from December 2013 to June 2017.
These recruits will not only fight for ISIS, but also smuggle weapons, equipment and money into the area.
To reach so many people, Candic manages over 120 Twitter accounts to spread his word.
He regularly shared the gruesome campaign, including footage from executions – one of which he previously labeled ‘the best thing ever seen on screen’.
In the video, prisoners are forced to dig their own graves before being shot dead.
Bilardi was cast as a shy and vulnerable teenager who sought solace after the death of his single mother in 2012.
Bilardi was angry that he could not find a way to leave Melbourne to fight overseas and noted his frustration on his blog ‘From Melbourne to Ramadi: My Journey’.
‘How was I to enter? I had no contact to help me,’ he wrote. ‘I gave up all hope after a failed attempt to find a contact.’
Shortly after posting this entry in his journal, Bilardi met Candic who said he would be able to help the teenager get to Syria.
New York Eastern District Judge Nicholas Garaufis said Bilardi (left) ‘deserves to be released at age 18 … deal with his problems and be a member of his community’
Bilardi was given a list of things to do in preparation that included learning Arabic, doing cardio for combat training and flying to Istanbul pretending to be a tourist.
He paid extra for his passport before booking a flight to Istanbul for August 25, 2014.
Bilardi called his brother Chris in October where he was pressured to return home.
‘I don’t know what it’s achieving,’ said Chris. ‘It might be achieving something for you, because you think it’s doing you good, you’re going to heaven or something.
‘But it doesn’t benefit anyone else. You are going to kill innocent people.’
Shortly thereafter, Bilardi was ordered to join seven other suicide bombers for a mission in the northern Iraqi city of Baiji.
It was terminated just before Bilardi detonated his bomb and it would not be until March 2015 that he was given his new mandate.
Bilardi then blew himself up in a suicide mission targeting Iraqi armed forces in Ramadi, central Iraq.
The attack was a failure: no one was killed and only a few vehicles were damaged.
Chilling extract from Billardi’s blog
‘As my martyrdom operation approaches, I want to tell you my story, how I came from an atheist school student in wealthy Melbourne to a soldier of the caliphate in Ramadi, Iraq, to dedicate my life to Islam.
A lot of people in Australia probably think they know the story, but the truth is, it’s something that has remained between me and Allah (Azza Wajal) until now.
‘My life in the working-class suburbs of Melbourne was, despite the ups and downs like everyone else’s, very comfortable.
Like my siblings, I considered myself good at studies and dreamed of becoming a political journalist.
I always dreamed that one day I would travel to countries like Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan to cover the situation in these countries…
‘Being only five years old at the time of the attacks on the US on 11 September 2001, my knowledge of operations was essentially non-existent…
‘My investigations into the invasion and occupation of both Iraq and Afghanistan have fueled my hatred of the US and its allies, including Australia.
This was the beginning of my respect for the Mujahideen which would only develop into a love for Islam and eventually bring me here to the Islamic State, but I’ll get to that later…
‘I guess I was destined to stand here as a soldier in the army of Shaykh Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (RA), considering the great respect I had for him even before I entered Islam.
May Allah accept him among the best Shuhads and grant me the opportunity to sit with him in the highest status of Paradise.
Fearing possible attempts by Australia’s increasingly intrusive authorities to block my departure [to the Middle East] I started drawing up a Plan B.
‘The plan included a series of bombings across Melbourne, targeting foreign consulates and political/military targets as well as grenade and knife attacks on shopping centers and cafes and detonating explosive belts among kuffars.
When I started collecting materials for explosives and making devices I realized that the authorities were indifferent to my plans but if anything caught their attention it would be my purchase of chemicals and other bomb making materials and so I stopped. . Plan B and wait until everything is ready and I can sneak out of the country undetected.’
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