- Title: USA: Anti-Islam filmmaker to return to jail for a year
- Date: 8th November 2012
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (NOVEMBER 07, 2012) (REUTERS) VARIOUS SHOTS OF THE COURTHOUSE EXTERIOR VARIOUS OF DEFENSE ATTORNEY STEVE SEIDEN TALKING TO MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) DEFENSE ATTORNEY STEVE SEIDEN, SAYING: "He's made his admission today to the government and to the court. He is going to abide by his agreement with the government and the court and
- Embargoed: 23rd November 2012 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Topics: Crime,Arts
- Reuters ID: LVA7J3Z2JAVBI21V917GKHGUJ3QU
- Story Text: The convicted California scam artist behind a crude anti-Islam film that stoked protests against the United States across the Muslim world was sent back to jail for a year on Wednesday (November 07) over probation violations stemming from his role in the video.
The Egyptian-born Coptic Christian, who has been publicly identified as Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, but whose legal name is Mark Basseley Youssef, admitted to several probation violations during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
At least one violation involved his use of an alias, Sam Bacile, a name that several actors from the film said he used in producing the video, which was circulated on line under several titles, including "The Innocence of Muslims."
Defense attorney Steve Seiden said his client is eager to put the case behind him.
"He's made his admission today to the government and to the court. He is going to abide by his agreement with the government and the court and proceed further and hopefully be reunited with family as soon as he has completed his incarceration," explained Seiden.
Seiden added that he believed his client was the victim in the case.
"You can draw your own conclusions regarding the outcome of the is matter," said Seiden. "My opinion is the government used this process to kill my clients First Amendment rights and clearly was that all along."
The 13-minute clip attributed to Youssef, 55, portrays the Prophet Mohammad as a fool and a sexual deviant, although cast members have said they were misled into appearing in a film they believed was an adventure drama called "Desert Warrior."
After the fact, actors said they learned that some of their lines spoken in the production had been dubbed over.
The film touched off a torrent of anti-American unrest in Arab and Muslim countries. The start of the violence on Sept. 11 coincided with an attack on U.S. diplomatic facilities in the Libyan city of Benghazi that killed four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.
U.S. and other foreign embassies were also stormed in various cities across the Middle East, Asia and Africa. For many Muslims, any depiction of the prophet is considered blasphemous.
Youssef, who had been on probation following his release from jail on a bank fraud conviction, was taken into custody in September over probation issues and has been held without bond at a Los Angeles federal detention center.
Prosecutors said Youssef violated the terms of his release from prison in June by using aliases, fraudulently obtaining a California driver's license under an assumed name and lying to probation officers by falsely claiming his only involvement with the anti-Islam film was as a script writer.
In court on Wednesday, he admitted to four violations and four others were dismissed. In addition to being sent back to jail for a year, Youssef was ordered to be placed on four years of supervised released once he gets out. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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