Len Deighton Dead at 97: Ipcress Files Author Behind Beloved Spy Novels Dies After Long Literary Career

Ed Holt at the Daily Mail reports that British triller writer Len Deighton has died.

Len Deighton, the beloved spy novelist best known for writing the Ipcress File, has died.

In a career that spanned decades, Mr Deighton wrote over 38 books but his most famous work remained his debut novel the Ipcress File which featured a nameless spy - later christened Harry Palmer.

The book broke the mould of thriller writing and featured a wisecracking working-class narrator and a mission that turned into a deadly conspiracy as he uncovered a bizarre brain drain among scientists. 

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below: 

Len Deighton dead at 97: Ipcress File author behind beloved spy novels dies after long literary career | Daily Mail Online

You can also read my On Crime column on Len Deighton via the link below:

Paul Davis On Crime: Yesterday's Spy Writer: My Online On Crime Column On The New Batch Of Len Deighton's Reissued Paperback Spy Thrillers                                                                            

 

Delaware County Woman Sentenced For Carjacking, Shooting At Victim, And Fleeing With Infant In Stolen SUV

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia released the information below:

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Phillis Fugah, 25, of Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Timothy J. Savage to ten years and one day in prison and five years of supervised release for carjacking and discharging a firearm during a violent crime.

The defendant previously pleaded guilty to one count of carjacking and one count of using, carrying, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in connection with an August 29, 2024 armed carjacking and shooting in Upper Darby.

As detailed in court filings and admitted by the defendant, Fugah and a male accomplice approached a Honda Pilot parked on the 7100 block of West Chester Pike, where a man sat in the vehicle with his two young children while waiting for his wife. The accomplice opened the passenger-side door but fled the scene.

Fugah then opened the driver’s side door, got behind the wheel, and pointed a gun at the victim while demanding money. The victim’s five-year-old son exited the vehicle through the front passenger door and ran to the sidewalk. The victim exited the rear driver’s side door and attempted to stop the defendant, telling her that his infant child remained inside the vehicle.

During the struggle, Fugah raised the firearm and shot at the victim, with the bullet partially shattering the driver’s-side window and striking the victim’s baseball cap, narrowly missing his head. A fragment of the bullet also struck the window of an occupied SEPTA bus across the street, passing over the heads of several passengers.

Fugah then fled in the Honda Pilot with the infant still inside the vehicle. The SUV was located a short distance away, and the child was recovered unharmed.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Newtown Square Resident Agency and the Upper Darby Township Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brian Doherty and Special Assistant United States Attorney Sandra Urban.                                                                                 

My Philly Daily Crime Beat Column On Philly Police And FBI Arresting More Than A Dozen Violent Gang Members

Philly Daily ran my Crime Beat column today on a major bust of Philadelphia violent gang members.

You can read the column via the link below or the text below:

 Davis: Philly police and FBI arrest more than a dozen gang members - Philly Daily 

I’ve been critical of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner here. But in the interest of fairness, after I interviewed two prominent critics of the progressive and activist DA, we at Philly Daily offered a Q&A of Krasner in which we allowed him to fully state his views on crime in Philadelphia without our editing or critical commentary. 

Davis: My Q&A with Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner - Philly Daily

And although I remain critical of Krasner, in fairness I’d like to also commend his office’s participation in the huge takedown of violent criminal gangs in Philadelphia. 

For too long, violent gang members have made life in some of Philadelphia’s neighborhoods a living hell. Like the old Wild West, these gangs face off and fire guns at each other on the streets and often hit innocent bystanders rather than their gangland rivals. (I’ve joked that I’d like to open a school to teach gangbangers how to properly aim and shoot and not turn their guns sideways like they do in the movies). 

I’m glad that the city and the federal government worked together to take some of these violent hoodlums off the board. 

On February 25th, the District Attorney’s Office announced that their Gun Violence Task Force (GVTF), along with the Philadelphia Police Department’s Shooting Investigations Group (SIG), the Philadelphia FBI’s field office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the charging of more than a dozen defendants belonging to multiple West, South and Southwest Philadelphia street groups involved in several shootings in their neighborhoods and elsewhere in the city. 

“The shooting spree occurred between September 21, 2022, and May 18th, 2024, and resulted in five homicides and 35 total shooting victims, the youngest victim being five years old,” the DA’s office stated. “The 33rd Philadelphia County Investigating Grand Jury (IGJ) has determined that Mark Johnson, Kasim Brown, Salahuddin Carter, Jymir Burbage, Jerwayne Haywood, Anthony Woodson, Ronnie Vincent-Quan, Herman Stigall, Markees Muhammad, Quamere Hall, Stephen Weddington, Hassan Stafford, Hamzah Curry, Paul Beckwith, Nasir Wells, Hasin Muse, and Tatiana Edwards are implicated in the shooting homicides of four victims, the non-fatal shootings of five survivors, and eleven other shooting incidents. Two other individuals are not being named at this time as part of ongoing investigations.”

The DA’s announcement stated that the Investigating Grand Jury also determined that nine of the defendants are connected to the street group known as the “Young Bag Chasers,” or “YBC,” six are associated with the street group “Campers Campers Klapperz,” or “CCK,” and two are connected to the street group “Parkside Killers,” or “PSK.”

The list of charges includes:

·     Murder (H) and other related charges:

·         Anthony Woodson

·         Ronnie Vincent-Quan

·         Herman Stigall

·         Markees Muhammad

·         Stephen Weddington

·         Jymir Burbage

·         Hasin Muse

·         Hamzah Curry

·     Attempted Murder (F1) and other related charges:

·         Mark Johnson

·         Kasim Brown

·     Aggravated Assault (F1) and other related charges:

·         Salahuddin Carter

·         Jerwayne Haywood

·         Quamere Hall

·         Hassan Stafford

·         Paul Beckwith

·         Nasir Wells

·     Criminal Conspiracy (H) to Murder and other related charges:

·         Tatiana Edwards

“Ballistic evidence was recovered from various crime scenes and analyzed. The analysis was compared to fired cartridge casings (FCCs) to determine whether the FCCs were fired from the same firearm, and what specific firearm that was. Surveillance video of the shooting incidents were also recovered from businesses, residential properties, city cameras as well as police vehicles equipped with video recording equipment.

“The IGJ alleged that Defendants Salahuddin Carter and Jymir Burbage were involved in a double non-fatal shooting on September 22, 2022, where an eight-year-old was struck by a stray bullet while playing on the front steps in the area of 1500 Block of North 13th Street. Officers responded to the scene at approximately 8:50 P.M. where they found the victim with a graze wound to the side of the victim’s head. The victim was taken to Temple Hospital where a second shooting victim with a gunshot wound to the leg arrived shortly thereafter. The second victim had been the passenger in a vehicle when the vehicle was shot on 13th Street. The driver of the vehicle ultimately crashed the car on the way to the hospital.”

The IGJ also alleges that Defendants Stephen Weddington and Jymir Burbage were involved in a homicide of a victim on December 7, 2023. After the homicide, the “Young Bag Chasers,” or “YBC” relentlessly mocked the victim and the victim’s workplace.

“The DAO remains deeply committed to working with all of our partners to secure justice for victims and co-survivors of violent crime,” said District Attorney Larry Krasner. “Our message to other groups who are engaged in violence: we will use every legal tool, resource and enforcement strategy to hold you accountable and seek an appropriately lengthy jail time for the harm you cause to residents of Philadelphia.”

“I’d like to thank ADA Marianne Aguilar, ADA Anna Walters and members of the Philadelphia Police Department’s Shooting Investigation’s Group for their diligent investigation into a sprawling shooting spree that captured and injured the lives of too many in West, Southwest, and South Philadelphia,” said Assistant District Attorney William Fritze, Chief of the DAO’s Gun Violence Task Force. “This work is a testament to the integral use of witness statements and digital evidence processed through the DAO’s GVTF Forensics Lab.”

Captain James Kearney of the Philadelphia Police Department’s Shooting Investigations Groups also weighed in, “The collaboration between the Philadelphia Police Department’s Shooting Investigations Group and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office’s Gun Violence Task Force allows for successful outcomes like the one today. It’s because of the collaboration with our Law Enforcement Partners that our city can sleep safer tonight.”

Paul Davis’s Crime Beat column appears here each week. He is also a contributor to Broad + Liberty and Counterterrorism magazine. He can be reached at pauldavisoncrime.com.  

Two ISIS Supporters Charged With Attempting To Detonate Explosive Devices During Protests Outside Gracie Mansion

The U.S. Justice Department released the below photos and information:

The Department of Justice announced charges against Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi alleging that they attempted to detonate two explosive devices in the vicinity of Gracie Mansion, and that they were acting in support of ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization.

“This was an alleged ISIS-inspired act of terrorism that could have killed American citizens,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “We will not allow ISIS’s poisonous, anti-American ideology to threaten this nation—our law enforcement officers will remain vigilant, as they were when these devices were brought to a protest.”

“These men allegedly sought to inflict mass casualties in service to ISIS with the hope of exceeding the carnage of the Boston Marathon bombing,” said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. “We are tremendously grateful to the brave law enforcement officers who ran into harm’s way to apprehend these individuals and disarm the explosives before anyone was harmed. Thanks to the quick investigative work by federal law enforcement, this Department of Justice will prosecute these men who pledged allegiance to a foreign terrorist organization to the fullest extent.”

“The defendants allegedly support ISIS and tried to follow the path of that deadly group by attempting to detonate explosive devices in a crowd,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “The FBI and our partners have no tolerance for terrorist organizations or those inspired by them to engage in attacks. We are committed to stopping acts of violence and will hold accountable those who seek to harm our citizens. I want to commend the brave NYPD officers who took action to prevent injuries or loss of life on the streets of New York.”

“This alleged act of terrorism, including the packing of metal shrapnel into explosive devices, reveal an intent to cause multiple deaths or serious injuries,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “This is a sober reminder of the threat posed by ISIS and its despicable ideology.  NSD will continue to use all tools at its disposal to protect this Nation and its people.”

“As alleged, on Saturday, March 7, during a protest taking place outside Gracie Mansion on the Upper East Side, Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi attempted to detonate two improvised explosive devices amongst the protesters,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York. “Moreover, after being apprehended by NYPD officers, both Balat and Kayumi stated they were aligned with ISIS. Free speech and peaceable assembly are the bedrock of American democracy. Violence is not protected speech, and it’s not protected protest. In New York, violence—particularly acts of terror—will be met with swift justice. This investigation remains ongoing, and we encourage anyone with further information to please contact tips.fbi.gov online or 1-800-CALL-FBI.”

As alleged in the Complaint:

On or about March 7, 2026, a protest called “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City, Stop New York City Public Muslim Prayer” and a counter-protest called “Run Nazis Out of New York City” were held outside of Gracie Mansion in Manhattan, New York. Gracie Mansion is the official residence of the Mayor of New York City.

At approximately 12:15 p.m., Balat ignited and threw an explosive device (Device-1) toward the area where the protesters were gathered, as pictured below:

Immediately after throwing Device-1, Balat ran to another location down the block and received a second explosive device (Device-2) from Kayumi, as pictured below:

After apparently igniting Device-2, Balat dropped Device-2 near where several NYPD officers were standing, ran away from the NYPD officers, and jumped over a barricade. He was tackled and arrested by NYPD officers shortly thereafter, as was Kayumi. Pictured below are Balat mid-flight and Device-2 hitting the ground:

Following his arrest, while en route to the NYPD precinct, Balat stated to NYPD officers: “this isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the prophet . . . We take action! We take action!”; and “if I didn’t do it someone else will come and do it.” Then, after arriving at the NYPD precinct, Balat requested a piece of paper and, after being given a paper and pen, wrote the following: “All praise is due to Allah lord of all worlds! I pledge my allegiance to the Islamic State. Die in your rage yu [sic] kuffar! Emir B.” “Kuffar” is an Arabic term that refers to “non-believers” or “infidels,” and “Die in your rage” is a slogan used by ISIS.

Law enforcement officers later asked Balat if he was familiar with the Boston Marathon bombing, and if that was what Balat had hoped to accomplish. Balat responded: “No, even bigger.  It was only three deaths.”

After Kayumi was arrested, and as he was being placed inside an NYPD vehicle to be transported from the scene to an NYPD precinct, an individual from the surrounding crowd yelled to Kayumi and asked why Kayumi had done this.  Kayumi responded, “ISIS.” Then, at the NYPD precinct, in response to a question from law enforcement about whether he was affiliated with ISIS, Kayumi indicated that he was. He further stated, in substance and part, that: (i) he has watched ISIS propaganda on his phone; (ii) his actions that day were partly inspired by ISIS; (iii) he did not feel comfortable holding the Devices earlier that day; and (iv) he would not feel comfortable if the Devices were in the interrogation room with him.

After Balat and Kayumi were arrested and the Devices were secured, an FBI Special Agent Bomb Technician (SABT) conducted a preliminary examination of the Devices and determined that they were each approximately the size of a mason jar; that they each had an attached fuse; and that they each had nuts and bolts attached to the exterior, surrounded by duct tape. A preliminary analysis of Device-1, the device that Balat threw into the crowd of protesters, showed that it contained TATP, a highly volatile explosive that is colloquially known as the “Mother of Satan” and extremely sensitive to impact, friction, and heat. TATP has been used in multiple terrorist attacks over the last decade.

Pictured below are the contents inside Device-1 after it was opened by law enforcement:

1.     On or about March 8, 2026, law enforcement officers located a parked vehicle registered to a family member of Balat a few blocks from Gracie Mansion. From inside the vehicle, law enforcement officers recovered a coiled green material consistent in appearance with hobby fuse, an empty metal can of the same approximate dimensions and appearance as the can recovered from inside Device-1, and a notebook containing handwritten notes. One page of the notebook contains the note “TATP explosive”; another page contains a list of chemical ingredients, including “hydrogen peroxide,” “sulfuric acid,” and “acetone”; and a third page contains a list of components and quantities, such as “aluminum can x6,” and “a box of bolts ect [sic] 2x.”

As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the charging instrument to date constitutes only allegations, and every fact described herein should be treated as an allegation.

Balat, 18, of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, and Kayumi, 19, of Newtown, Pennsylvania, are charged with attempted provision of material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; use of a weapon of mass destruction, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison; transportation of explosive materials, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; interstate transportation and receipt of explosives, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; and unlawful possession of destructive devices, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

The minimum and maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by a judge.

Mr. Clayton praised the outstanding efforts of the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force of the FBI, which consists of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the NYPD, and over 50 other federal, state, and local agencies. Mr. Clayton also thanked the Counterterrorism Section of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the New York State Police, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI Newark Field Office, the FBI Philadelphia Field Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their assistance.

This case is being handled by the National Security and International Narcotics Unit for the Southern District of New York. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan L. Bodansky and Jane Y. Chong are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorney James Donnelly of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and paralegal specialist Juan Muñoz.                                                                            

The Walnut Street Theater In Philadelphia Is Offering Edward Albee’s Award-Winning Play, ‘A Delicate Balance’

Philly Daily, where my Crime Beat column appears each week, reports that the Walnut Street Theater is offering a production of Edward Albee’s classic Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Delicate Balance.

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below:  

The Walnut Street Theater is offering Edward Albee’s Award-Winning Play, ‘A Delicate Balance’ - Philly Daily

Iranian Intelligence Agent Convicted Of Terrorism And Murder For Hire In Connection With Foiled Plot To Assassinate U.S. Politicians And Government Officials

The U.S. Justice Department released the information below:

On Friday, a federal jury convicted Asif Merchant, also known as “Asif Raza Merchant,” of murder for hire and attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries. Merchant was a trained operative of the Iranian government’s global terrorist force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Merchant admitted at trial that the IRGC sent him to the United States to arrange for political assassinations and steal documents, but law enforcement foiled the plot before any attack could be carried out. Merchant arrived in the United States in April of 2024, met with purported hitmen in June—who were in fact undercover U.S. law enforcement officers in New York—and was placed under arrest before leaving the country in July of 2024. Merchant faces up to life in prison.

“This man landed on American soil hoping to kill President Trump — instead, he was met with the might of American law enforcement,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “The Department of Justice will remain ever-vigilant to protect Americans, prosecute terrorists, and halt acts of terrorism before they happen.”

“Merchant tried to hire someone to kill a politician or a U.S. government official, but the FBI and our partners stopped that deadly plot,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “This was not the first attempt by Iran to harm our citizens on U.S. soil; the other efforts also failed. Let this verdict serve as a reminder that the FBI is committed to detecting such threats and preventing acts of violence, and we will hold accountable anyone who tries to interfere with our democratic system.”

“Merchant, a trained Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps operative, entered the United States intending to commit acts of terror, and ultimately, to facilitate the assassination of U.S. government officials, including President Trump,” said Assistant Attorney General for National security John A. Eisenberg.  “Merchant’s plot struck at the heart of our democracy and our commitment to the rule of law. NSD remains committed to defending our Nation from the pernicious threat of terrorism.”

“Iran’s terrorist regime sent Asif Merchant here to sow mayhem and murder,” stated United States Attorney Nocella for the Eastern District of New York.  “Thanks to the vigilance of our law enforcement partners, his scheme ended in failure.  Today, with Merchant’s conviction, that failure is complete.  This Office will always remain vigilant in our mission to protect the United States from foreign terrorist adversaries. ”

As set forth in trial exhibits and testimony, including the defendant’s own testimony, Merchant began working for the IRGC in Pakistan in late 2022 or early 2023, when he received training in tradecraft, including countersurveillance.  Later in 2023, he was sent to the United States to look for potential IRGC recruits who could stay behind in the United States.  Merchant testified that he knew that the IRGC was a designated terrorist organization.  Throughout this period, Merchant repeatedly traveled to Iran to meet with his IRGC handler.

Merchant testified that in 2024, he was sent back to the United States with a new mission:  to recruit “Mafia” members to steal documents, stage a protest, and arrange  the murder of one of three specific U.S. government officials and politicians.  To that end, Merchant contacted an acquaintance in New York who he thought could help him with his scheme.  That person, Nadeem Ali, instead reported Merchant’s conduct to law enforcement and became a confidential source.

In early June, Merchant met Ali in New York and explained his assassination plot.  Merchant told Ali that he had an ongoing opportunity for him and then made a “finger gun” motion with his hand, indicating that the opportunity was related to a killing.  Merchant further stated that the intended victims would be “targeted here,” in the United States. Merchant instructed Ali to arrange meetings with individuals whom Merchant could hire to carry out these actions.  Merchant explained that his plot involved multiple criminal schemes: (1) stealing documents or USB drives from a target’s home; (2) planning a protest; and (3) killing a politician or government official.

At that meeting, Merchant began planning potential assassination scenarios and quizzed Ali on how he would kill a target in the various scenarios.  Specifically, Merchant asked Ali to explain how the target would die in different scenarios.  Merchant told Ali that there would be “security [] all around” the person.

Merchant stated that the assassination would occur after he left the United States and he would communicate with Ali from overseas using code words.  Ali asked whether Merchant had spoken to the unidentified “party” back home with whom Merchant was working. Merchant responded that he had and that the party back home told him to “finalize” the plan and leave the United States.  Merchant would later testify that the “party” was his IRGC handler.

In mid-June, Merchant met with the purported hitmen, who were in fact undercover U.S. law enforcement officers (the UCs) in New York. Merchant advised the UCs that he was looking for three services from them: theft of documents, arranging protests at political rallies and for them to kill a “political person.” Merchant stated that the hitmen would receive instructions on who to kill after Merchant had departed the United States.

Throughout this period, Merchant performed internet searches for the locations of political rallies and sent reports back to his IRGC handler regarding security protocols at rallies.

Merchant then began arranging means to obtain $5,000 in cash to pay the UCs as an advance payment for the assassination, which he eventually received with assistance from an individual overseas.  On June 21, Merchant met with the UCs in New York and paid them the $5,000 advance.  After Merchant paid the $5,000 to the UCs, one of the UCs stated, “now we’re bonded,” to which Merchant responded “yes.”  The UC then stated “Now we know we’re going forward. We’re doing this,” to which Merchant responded “Yes, absolutely.”

Merchant subsequently made flight arrangements and planned to leave the United States on Friday, July 12, 2024. On that day, law enforcement agents placed Merchant under arrest before he could leave the country.  

The FBI’s Field Offices in Dallas, Houston, Tampa, Boston, Washington D.C., Chicago and Albany for partnered in the investigation of this case.  The New York City Police Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection assisted with the investigation.

The case is being handled by the Office’s National Security & Cybercrime Section for the Eastern District of New York.  Assistant United States Attorneys Sara K. Winik, Nina Gupta and Gilbert Rein for the Eastern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Deputy Chief Paul Casey and Trial Attorney Jessica Joyce of the Department of Justice’s Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division.                                                                                    

Mark Twain On Being Named As One Of The Great Authors