Mohammed Zazi was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday for making a false statement involving international and domestic terrorism.
The 53-year-old Aurora resident is presently free on a $50,000 unsecured bond and is to appear in U.S. District Court today.
Authorities have accused Zazi of providing false information to the FBI during voluntary questioning about the activities of his son, Najibullah Zazi, in an international terrorism investigation.
The charge in the indictment is identical to one previously direct- filed against Zazi.
Specifically, federal prosecutors say Mohammed Zazi denied he had a phone conversation with someone about whether his son was in trouble. But according to the indictment, Zazi did have such a phone conversation.
The indictment alleges that the elder Zazi “did knowingly and willfully make a materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statement to agents of the FBI.”
Also Thursday, 9News reported that Zazi and his son were trying to start their own airport shuttle business, and had obtained licenses in August.
A terrorism expert said it could have been part of Najibullah’s alleged plot, though his attorney cites it as proof he intended to put down roots in the Denver area.
The younger Zazi, a 24-year-old shuttle driver at Denver International Airport, is charged with one count of intent to use a weapon of mass destruction.
The FBI believes the younger Zazi learned to make bombs at an al-Qaeda training camp in Pakistan in 2008 and that he traveled from his apartment in Aurora to New York on Sept. 9 and 10 to carry out terrorism-related activities.
If convicted of the charge, the elder Zazi faces a maximum of eight years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. His son faces life in prison.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
Deborah Sherman of 9News contributed to this report.
