2 chapters across the catalog
James Cromitie, a low-level marijuana dealer earning $14,000 a year, was pursued for months by informant Shahed Hussain. Despite Cromitie's initial inability to find co-conspirators, he eventually agreed to the plot after Hussain offered a $250,000 payout. The hosts emphasize that the FBI essentially "cooked up" the conspiracy, providing the targets, the plan, and the financial motivation to a man who was otherwise a "big talker" with no actual means to commit terrorism.
John Mueller of the Cato Institute analyzes 70 post-9/11 terrorism cases, noting that more than half involved FBI informants working inside the plots. In the Newburgh case, the government specifically introduced Stinger missiles and required travel to Connecticut to ensure the charges carried a mandatory 25-year federal sentence. Mueller concludes that the crime would never have occurred without the government instigating, planning, and bringing it to fruition.
