Judge orders release of two accused of posing as federal agents

Two men accused by federal prosecutors of impersonating federal agents will be released from jail pending trial, a federal judge has ruled.

Magistrate Judge Michael Harvey ruled Tuesday that the Justice Department had not met the standard required to detain Arian Taherzadeh, 40, and Haider Ali, 35. He said the Justice Department failed to show that national security information was compromised or that there was any involvement by a foreign government in their alleged actions.

Judge Harvey said the government’s claims that the two men had ties to a hostile government were overblown.

The FBI last week arrested Mr. Taherzadeh and Mr. Ali during a raid on a luxury apartment building in Southeast Washington where the two men lived.

Federal prosecutors say the men had presented themselves as federal officials for more than two years, and had provided apartments for Secret Service agents.

During a court appearance Thursday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Rothstein said Mr. Ali told witnesses he was affiliated with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency and had obtained multiple visas from Pakistan and Iran months before presenting himself as a U.S. official.

Mr. Rothstein said at the time that the U.S. had yet to verify Mr. Ali’s claims.

Judge Harvey said Tuesday there was no evidence of foreign ties in the case and no suggestion that a hostile foreign government was involved.

The two men caught the attention of federal officials in mid-March during a U.S. Postal Inspector’s investigation of a reported assault on a letter carrier at their apartment building in the District.

The two men told the authorities that they were members of a phony task force within the Department of Homeland Security to investigate gangs and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The U.S. Postal Inspectors alerted other federal officials after their initial interview with the two men.

During a search of five residences and three vehicles at the apartment building last week, the FBI found body armor, gas masks, handcuffs, and police training manuals and surveillance equipment, officials said. The FBI also found several firearms in the sweep, according to Mr. Rothstein.

Authorities also seized a binder containing information about other tenants in the building, including several who work in law enforcement and other federal agencies.

Four Secret Service officials have been placed on administrative leave pending further investigation into allegations that they received gifts from Mr. Taherzadeh and Mr. Ali.

Among the gifts prosecutors allege the two men provided was a penthouse apartment costing $40,000 per year. Mr. Taherzadeh also offered to purchase a $2,000 assault rifle for one Secret Service agent who serves on the first lady’s protection detail, prosecutors say.

The Secret Service said in a statement to The Washington Post that it is conducting a review of the situation and that it is treating the allegations “extremely seriously.”

“Although this is an ongoing investigation, we have found no evidence of any adverse security impacts or improper access to sensitive information, systems or protected locations at this time,” said Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. “We continue to work closely with the FBI and the US Attorney’s Office on the criminal investigation and prosecution of the Defendants.”