11/01/01 THU 18:14 FAII I INS MASSBNA NY 8)002

November 1, 2001 1300 hours

Mary Ellen O'Shea, Supervisory Inspector

Massena, New York 13662;

Tel (315)764-0310 or 764-0677

Buffalo District Office |

I received information that possibly a male by the name of

Mohammad Atta, born 03-21r68, may have applied for entry to the
U.S. at the Massena POE. ;

A private citizen doing an internship with local authorities noticed

the name MOHAMMAD ATTA on list individuals who had
appeared at the Massena Court for traffic violations.

1 researched and found that MOHAMMAD ATTA, DOB 03/21/68

was inspected on 11/26/00 at the Massena POE. He was
accompanied by| | a citizen of
Pakistan. They were both admitted as visitors for pleasure. At this
time MOHAMMAD ATTA was issued a citation by the New York
State Police. He appeared at the Massena Town Court on 04/18/01
to pay the fine. \ spoke with FBI Agent in Syracuse. She confirmed she had

knowledge of this. FBI Agentl btated that the media had

knowledge of all this. i //

9/11 Law Enforcement Privacy

 SIGNIFICANT INCIDENT REPORT

1. The date, time, and location of the incident.

November 1 2001 2130 hrs at Buffalo, NY
2. The name and telephone number of the person making the report.
Winston Barrus, Deputy District Director, Buffalo, NY | ]
3. The location of the INS office with jurisdiction over the personnel involved.
Buffalo, New York

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9/11 Law Enforcement Privacy

4. A brief description of the incident. The attached memorandum dated 11/01/01 from Sll
Mary Ellen O'Shea advised that a Mohammad ATTA DOB 03/21/68 was inspected at the
Massena, NY POE on 11/26/00. This information came to light yesterday when an intern
working for a pro se attorney seeking to file a law suit against the NYS police for
discrimination against North American Indians regarding the issuance of traffic citations
noticed the name Mohammad ATTA on a list of individuals who had appeared in Massena
traffic court. . ""--...

Upon receiving this information today Sll O'Shea conducted a search of POE inspections
records. This resulted in an entry being located on a secondary inspection log form I-605
reflecting the admission of Mohammad ATTA and an associate! ""I a
citizen of Pakistan and a Canadian landed immigrant. The nationally code listed for Mr.
ATTA on the I-605 was 80 which represents Canada.

Sll O'Shea contacted the Massena city court to verify the traffic citation information and a
short time later she received a call from Syracuse FBI agenlj I
I Jadvised Sll O'Shea that she was made aware of the
Mohammad ATTA information yesterday and that Sll O'Shea should not conduct any further
investigation. She further advised Sll O'Shea that it was her understanding that the local
news media in Massena was aware of this information.

Buffalo INV contacted the Syracuse FBI who advised that they are attempting to confirm
weather or not a Mohammad ATTA who was inspected at Massena on 11/26/00 was the
same subject involved in the September 11 attacks. The FBI faxed a photo of ATTA to
Massena for viewing by the Judge, NYS trooper and a clerk of the court looking for a positive
ID but this proved inconclusive. The FBI is currently hoping to lift a finger print from the
traffic citation paperwork in hopes of making a conclusive ID. In the meantime they are
conducting surveillance of residences in Cornwall and Alexandria, Ontario obtained from
court records.

It appears ATTA and his associates were referred for secondary inspection on 11/26/00
because ATTA was operating a vehicle with a suspended driver's license. This resulted in
NYS police being called to the POE and the traffic citation being issued. If this subject is the
Mohammad ATTA related to the attacks it would appear he may have presented a false
Canada citizenship card or passport which would explain the nationality code of 80 recorded
on the I-605. Records reflect that both subjects were admitted as B2 visitors.

We will advise immediately when more information becomes available.

5. The identity and current location of any injured or deceased persons(s), including an
assessment of the extent of injuries.
N/A
6. The identity and current location of:
a) INS personnel involved in the incident.
N/A

b) Witnesses (INS and civilian).

N/A
7. Firearms incidents only: The type of firearm(s) used, number of shots fired, and the
current location of all firearms used in the incident.
N/A

8. Other law enforcement organizations notified. Have any of these initiated an investigation?
FBI

9. Actual or expected media interest, including information released to the media.

The media appears to have knowledge of this information. If subject is confirmed to be
terrorist ATTA media reports can be expected.