Calif. man behind anti-Islam film arrested
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The California man behind a crudely produced anti-Islamic video posted to YouTube that has inflamed parts of the Middle East was arrested for violating terms of his probation, authorities said Thursday.
Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, was convicted in 2010 for federal check and sentenced to 21 months in prison. Under terms of his probation, he was not allowed to use computers or the Internet for five years without approval from his probation officer.
Nakoula was arrested after federal probation officials determined he violated the terms of his supervised release, said Thomas Mrozek U.S. Attorney's spokesman in Los Angeles.
A U.S. District Court hearing was scheduled for Nakoula on Thursday afternoon. It was closed to media and the public.
Protests have erupted around the Middle East over a 14-minute trailer for "Innocence of Muslims," which depicts Muhammad as a womanizer, religious fraud and child molester. Though the trailer was posted to YouTube in July, the violence didn't break out until Sept. 11 and has spread since, killing dozens.
Nakoula, a Christian originally from Egypt, went into hiding after he was identified as the man behind the trailer.
The full story about Nakoula and the video still isn't known.
The movie was made last year by a man who called himself Sam Bacile. After the violence erupted, a man who identified himself as Bacile called media outlets including The Associated Press, took credit for the film and said it was meant to portray the truth about Muhammad and Islam, which he called a cancer.
The next day, the AP determined there was no Bacile and linked the identity to Nakoula, a former gas station owner with a drug conviction and a history of using aliases. Federal authorities later confirmed there was no Bacile and that Nakoula was behind the movie.
Before going into hiding, Nakoula acknowledged to the AP he was involved with the film, but said he only worked on logistics and management.
A film permit listed Media for Christ, a Los Angeles-area charity run by other Egyptian Christians, as the production company. Most of the film was made at the charity's headquarters. Steve Klein, an insurance agent in Hemet and outspoken Muslim critic, has said he was a consultant and promoter for the film.
The trailer still can be found on YouTube. The Obama administration asked Google, YouTube's parent, to take down the video but the company has refused, saying it did not violate its content standards.
Meantime, a number of actors and workers on the film have come forward to say they were duped. They say they were hired for a film titled "Desert Warrior" and there was no mention of Islam or Muhammad in the script. Those references were dubbed in after filming was completed.
Actress Cindy Lee Garcia has sued to get the trailer taken down, saying she was duped.
Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, was convicted in 2010 for federal check and sentenced to 21 months in prison. Under terms of his probation, he was not allowed to use computers or the Internet for five years without approval from his probation officer.
Nakoula was arrested after federal probation officials determined he violated the terms of his supervised release, said Thomas Mrozek U.S. Attorney's spokesman in Los Angeles.
A U.S. District Court hearing was scheduled for Nakoula on Thursday afternoon. It was closed to media and the public.
Protests have erupted around the Middle East over a 14-minute trailer for "Innocence of Muslims," which depicts Muhammad as a womanizer, religious fraud and child molester. Though the trailer was posted to YouTube in July, the violence didn't break out until Sept. 11 and has spread since, killing dozens.
Nakoula, a Christian originally from Egypt, went into hiding after he was identified as the man behind the trailer.
The full story about Nakoula and the video still isn't known.
The movie was made last year by a man who called himself Sam Bacile. After the violence erupted, a man who identified himself as Bacile called media outlets including The Associated Press, took credit for the film and said it was meant to portray the truth about Muhammad and Islam, which he called a cancer.
The next day, the AP determined there was no Bacile and linked the identity to Nakoula, a former gas station owner with a drug conviction and a history of using aliases. Federal authorities later confirmed there was no Bacile and that Nakoula was behind the movie.
Before going into hiding, Nakoula acknowledged to the AP he was involved with the film, but said he only worked on logistics and management.
A film permit listed Media for Christ, a Los Angeles-area charity run by other Egyptian Christians, as the production company. Most of the film was made at the charity's headquarters. Steve Klein, an insurance agent in Hemet and outspoken Muslim critic, has said he was a consultant and promoter for the film.
The trailer still can be found on YouTube. The Obama administration asked Google, YouTube's parent, to take down the video but the company has refused, saying it did not violate its content standards.
Meantime, a number of actors and workers on the film have come forward to say they were duped. They say they were hired for a film titled "Desert Warrior" and there was no mention of Islam or Muhammad in the script. Those references were dubbed in after filming was completed.
Actress Cindy Lee Garcia has sued to get the trailer taken down, saying she was duped.
Observations
Â
- Obama shows his true contempt for Christians (Coptic or otherwise) and his true love for Muslims by having this man arrested (his crones are doing his dirty work).Â
Â
- Obama claims in his book that his identity comes from his BLACK MUSLIM FATHER who had extreme RADICAL ideas. It's not rocket science folks it's what he SAID and WROTE about himself. On the flip-side make note of how little he talks about his white mother or any of his white relatives...why??
Â
- Is Obama a Christian or just acting ....to date no US leaders who claimed to be Christian EVER bowed and prayed with Muslims (nor were they accepted as Muslim like Obama is or has been...). They did not turn their backs on their Christian faith.
Â
- This is just another example of Obama's mode of operation. You disagree you get arrested or harassed.. Remember how the Democrats dropped 200-250 investigators into tiny Wasilla Alaska to attempt to dig up dirt on Palin? Liberals are extremists!!
Â
IMPEACH OBAMA!!
Â
Wake up America before we become the "Home of the Formerly FREE"!!
 @Truth Percolates Well, American is certainly the home of the paranoid and mis-informed. Funny how if this crook was a Muslim you would be screaming about locking him up and throwing away the key, rather than coddling him. Or do you always coddle criminals?
Since we're so obviously railroading this guy to appease the Muslims, why not just throw him in Guantanamo and let him have "yard time" with the detainees?  Â
It's George Bush's fault
How embarrissing it should be for the mainstream media in this country (including KOMO) to be upstaged by Univision, a network where journalists take their job seriously.
Â
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2206105/White-House-admits-attack-Libya-killed-ambassador-Chris-Stevens-act-terror.html?openGraphAuthor=%2Fhome%2Fsearch.html%3Fs%3D%26authornamef%3DMichael%2BZennie
The whole film is stupid and irresponsible ! They love this country...huh...I just don't think so,
in fact,they do more harm to our American people in overseas than good.
News media do your JOB!
Â
Expose the lie created by the Obama administration when they chose to cover their own rear-ends by blaming the embassy attacks on an anti-Muslim movie, which you admit was posted on YouTube back in July, instead of being honest with the American people about the terrorist attacks upon our soil. These were well planned terrorist attacks meant to coincide with the 9/11 anniversary. They occurred in Libya and Egypt where Obama's foreign policy had recently supported the overthrow of existing governments. In Egypt's case an ally of the United States.The embassies themselves were woefully unprotected especially considering the situation in the Middle East and the anniversary of 9/11. Put a microphone in this incompetent president's face and ask him why he lied to the American people. Why our embassies were not protected? Why CNN discovered that ambassador Wilson was concerned with his safety and had expressed those concerns to the state department, and why those concerns were ignored? And why he (Obama) continues to lie and deceive the American people even after certain members of his administration have been forced to be truthful?
Â
 @ByeByeBarry Hey triple B, you must be relieved to know you will be able to continue to write this kind of tin foil hat perspective for another four years after Obama is reelected... isn't freedom of speech grand! Heck, the way the Republicans are going you'll be doing this for the rest of your life as the R's behavior and future American demographics are going to guarantee a Democratic party president for a long time to come. Here's to Democracy here and abroad!
 @albionÂ
Â
How did your little theory work out for you during the 2010 mid-terms? What exactly has changed?
 @ByeByeBarry  @albion It was clear in 2010 that Republicans were going to make gains just as it is clear today that Democrats are going to do well this round. What I don't understand is why the Republican mis-information machine is less effective now than then it was in 2010; I guess you can only cry wolf for so long before people stop listening to you.
 @ByeByeBarry Tell that to the sheeple and they'll think you're off your meds. This election year is an embarrassment to the lengths this administration will go to in order to look good and bend over for the religions of the world thinking that will make them look better. It's just another venue for the enemies of the U.S. to make us look bad. The ambassador, as you said, even warned and asked for more security, and dillweed ignored it in the name of showing up on every talk show and ignoring other world leaders. Don't forget to vote soon because this clown is ruining America with his socialism and apologetic waffling. The other option isn't any better in my opinion, but at least he can be straightforward with his lack of brain-to-mouth filter instead of looking like a wimpy socialist.
@ByeByeBarry
Â
Abbassador Stevens.
Some people have no inferential logic and blindly believe whatever is spoon fed to them. Good examples are the people who responded to me below.
What a cover up by Obama admin weenie
It all in the timing.I can't wait to see what the charges are.Â
 @Tacobender 49 ummm Violation of Probation......did you read the article?
 @Ihateupeople The only violation of his probation he might have committed was using his computer.I sure Holder will find some other trumped up charges.
 @Tacobender 49 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tin_foil_hat
 @Ihateupeople ummm, how is he in violation exactly? Who said he posted the video?
 @jelisized Apparently the prosecutor, the judge....and maybe even the sherrifs office. Furthermore I have seen evidence of him using a computer.....it does not say he can use a computer indirectly it says he can not use a computer. Therefore the video is in fact evidence he used a computer.
Â
Its like this....if a pedophile uses a computer to contact victims and is then ordered not to use a computer he IS STILL guilty if he has a friend use a computer to contact more victims. Direct and indirect use are not defined....technically he could be arrested for someone else posting on his facebook because that is also and indirect use by him of a computer.
Â
Furthermore while I do understand your point you must admit it is crazy to thnk Obama or the UN ordered this arrest. That's a tinfoil hat theory if I have ever seen one.
This A.P. writer must not have read the news about the current administration knowing this had nothing to do with the attacks less than 24 hours after they occurred (depending on if you ask Clinton, Obama, the U.N. ambassador, etc - since they all keep contradicting each other). This has nothing to do with this video; it's a political move to shut this guy up and hide him away until the elections are over.
 @jelisized He was not arrested for this having anything to do with the MIddle East. He was arrested for violating his parole.Â
Â
Yes, he claims he only worked on "logistics" but maybe he didn't.
Â
Newsflash, many people arrested swear they are innocent.Â
 @jelisized Yeah its Obama's fault this guy violated his parole.  Â
 @Andrew Bush "Before going into hiding, Nakoula acknowledged to the AP he was involved with the film, but said he only worked on logistics and management." How was the probation violated? Details, please.
Great now WE get to pay for his protective custody...this POS probably wanted to be locked up after all of this mess.
Â
I'm glad he has the right to free speech but I'm tired of defending idiots like this or the KKK or the neo nazi's......and sadly the uneducated masses of the world take misplaced anger out on our innocent people that are "in country" just to help the those scum in the first place, and please read my comment before you accuse me of calling muslims scum....I am simply referring to the scum that attack us for a video that the rest of us do not condone.
Â
How stupid do you have to be to believe that YouTube speaks for the American people?
excellent - expel this assbag back to Egypt.
Â
oh, and youtube - what this guy did was the equivalent of yelling fire in a movie theatre. Â you yank video because of copyright infringement but won't when scores of people are being killed?
 @unobtanium Are you trying to justify extortion, murder or both?  The film didn't do either, the people behind the actions did.Â
 @unobtanium If hate freedom of speech, than do us a favor and delete your post.Because that is exactly what is going to happen to all us.JUST SILENTS!Â
@unobtanium
Yes, we must stop free speech immediately.Â
 @opout While I do not think that the "film" should be taken down, this isn't a free speech issue so much. Youtube is a corporation and they can remove any comments that they want. Just like here at komo, you have no free speech rights to post comments.  Â
 @opout  @unobtanium yes. yes. it's the fascist way...