Abdulahi Hasan Shariff, a Somali refugee is charged with ramming his car into a Canadian policeman, stabbing him and then injuring four people while leading officers on a high-speed chase over the weekend. He was ordered deported from the U.S. in 2011
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Tuesday that a Somali refugee charged with ramming his car into a Canadian policeman, stabbing him and then injuring four people while leading officers on a high-speed chase over the weekend was ordered deported from the U.S. in 2011.
Jennifer Elzea, an ICE spokeswoman, said Hasan Sharif Abdulahi was taken into ICE’s custody in San Diego in July of that year and in September an immigration judge ordered him sent back to Somalia.
Elzea said Sharif was released from custody two months later then failed to report as ordered for his removal on January 24, 2012.
She said efforts to locate him were unsuccessful.
She also said Sharif had no known criminal history at the time of his encounters with ICE.
Sharif now faces 11 charges in Canada, including five of attempted murder in the Saturday night attack in Edmonton, Alberta.
Police have raised the possibility of filing terrorism charges against Sharif because there was an Islamic State flag in his car and he was investigated in 2015 for espousing extremist views.
The attack took place in Edmonton, Alberta. Police are pictured investigating the scene on Saturday
Police say a U-Haul truck rammed a traffic control barricade and sent an officer flying into the air some 15 feet
Constable Michael Chernyk, pictured, was released from the hospital with stab wounds on face and head and abrasions on his arms after the knife attack
Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said Sharif, 30, entered Canada legally in 2012 and obtained refugee status.
A Canadian official said Sharif entered Canada from the U.S. The official insisted on speaking anonymously because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the case.
ICE listed Sharif’s name with slightly different spelling, Abdullahi Hassan Sharif. But the Canadian official and a U.S. government official both said it is the same man.
A preliminary hearing for Sharif opened Tuesday but was recessed so he can find a lawyer.
He appeared on closed-circuit television and followed proceedings with the help of an interpreter. The suspect spoke briefly with a lawyer who stepped forward to help.
Police say the U-Haul intentionally drove at pedestrians at crosswalks throughout the chase
Crews clean up the scene where the van ran into pedestrians and later flipped over Saturday while being pursued by police
The hearing was held over until November 14, but could resume sooner if Sharif can hire a lawyer before then.
Edmonton police say they believe Sharif acted alone during the series of attacks, which began around 8:15pm on Saturday as police Constable Mike Chernyk was handling crowd control outside a Canadian Football League game at a stadium just northeast of downtown.
Chernyk was hit by a speeding white Chevy Malibu that rammed through a barrier and sent him flying through the air.
The driver got out, pulled out a large knife and began stabbing Chernyk as he lay on the ground. The officer fought back, and the suspect fled on foot.
Edmonton Police investigate at the scene where a man hit pedestrians then flipped the U-Haul truck he was driving, pictured at the intersection at 107 Street and 100th Avenue in Edmonton
Chernyk suffered cuts on his face and scrape on his arms but was released from a hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.
Police distributed the name and physical description of the Malibu’s registered owner and set up roadblocks, and officers stopped the suspect, now driving a U-Haul truck, hours later at a checkpoint.
The driver took off toward downtown with police in high-speed pursuit, and the truck struck four pedestrians along the way.
The chase continued until the truck crashed on its side. Officers used a stun gun on the driver and took him into custody.
Two of the four pedestrians remain hospitalized, one with a fractured skull.