A mysterious Nepalese man who is being held on federal charges for attempting to bring nine knives, a stun gun and a can of Mace aboard a United Airlines flight has a North Side connection.
While Subash Bahadur Gurung, 27, gave no permanent address, police learned that he had lived for a time in apartments at 1025 W. Hollywood Ave. and 5737 N. Kenmore Ave. in Edgewater.
In fact, published reports have linked the latter apartment to a man who was recently arrested for a similar offense. Ayub Ali Khan, who is being held as a material witness to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, was one of two men taken into federal custody Sept. 12 with box cutters on a San Antonio-bound Amtrak train.
However, a statement issued by the FBI Tuesday said “published reports indicating that Gurung shared a common address with alleged terrorist suspects is [sic] not accurate.” Officially, Khan is still being held for questioning and is not a suspect. The FBI was unclear on whether there was any relationship at all between Gurung and Khan.
Gurung was arrested by Chicago police at O’Hare Airport the night of Saturday, Nov. 3, on a state misdemeanor charge, questioned by FBI agents and then released.
The next night, when he returned and tried to retrieve his baggage, he was again taken into custody by FBI agents and charged federally with attempting to board an aircraft with weapons. Neither Chicago police nor the FBI have said why he was released the first time.
Gurung appeared in federal court Monday, Nov. 5. He entered no plea, saying he didn’t understand the charges against him. He remained in custody, and his bond hearing was scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 8.
If convicted of the federal offense, Gurung faces a maximum of 10 years incarceration and a $250,000 fine.
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