| LevinMage |
Posted
on 12-Nov-01 06:49 PM
Chicago, IL November 9, 2001
To Whom It May Concern:
On behalf of his brothers and the Nepali community in Chicago, I am sending an account of the extremely high profile case of
Subash Bahadur Gurung. We are using this opportunity to set the record straight and fill in the gaps in the knowledge of the events
about which many Nepalis may have received questions. We hope that the course of events will ultimately result in this disturbed
young man being cleared of any terrorist connections and being sent back into the care of his parents after some difficult times.
Subash came to the USA in 1998 to pursue higher education and ended up in a local college here in Chicago. Over time, however,
something went wrong and he become more withdrawn and unsociable. He was not touch with most members of the community
and dropped out of school. In October 2000 he moved with one of his two younger brothers to Minnesota where both are enrolled in
school. He remained there, a recluse, not enrolled in school and with an expired visa until end of October 2001. It was during this
idle period that he apparently amassed, through online purchases, the knives and materials that have been in the news accounts. At
this time his brother persuaded him to return to Nepal which he agreed to do and thus his trip to Chicago. He had the cash given to
him to pay for his ticket to Nepal as well as his possessions to take back home. He even claimed to have reserved an airline ticket to
Nepal that was never purchased.
During his three-day stay in Chicago he also is known to have visited both his previous residences trying to rent apartments.
Unfortunately, one of these buildings had been publicized by the media as the purported residence of someone detained after
September 11. At some point he apparently changed his mind and decided to stay on in the US. A friend offered to pick him up in
Omaha. He therefore purchased the one-way ticket for cash with the consequences that everyone has seen heard or read about.
He had been under medication for psychiatric disorders in Nepal from a period dating back nine years. His brothers and friends all
say that he discontinued this after he arrived in the US. He has been described as forgetful, unsociable, reserved, uncommunicative
and withdrawn by those who knew him during his stay at Chicago. The brothers and friends all believe that whatever occurred is a
function of these factors and not because of any overt harmful intent. It will now be up to the courts and the investigators to verify
this in the next step of the process that he is now in.
During his initial appearance on Federal charges he was provided a capable attorney through the Federal Defender Program and
his defense is being handled professionally. His brothers are in the process to visit with him and provide him moral support. It
appears that this will take some time. His local friends and acquaintances are providing all relevant information for his defense. His
attorney decided to forego the preliminary hearing scheduled for yesterday and move on to the next step, the timing of which is up
to the prosecution. He has chosen to concentrate on prepare his defense and has set the machinery in motion. In the meantime
Subash will remain in detention without the possibility of bail.
If there are any registered Nepali mental health professionals in the US, they might be of some assistance or if anyone has any
relevant information that could help, please contact me and I will put you in touch with the attorney.
Thank you very much.
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