Iranian using pseudonym of Oliver King arrested in US- Canada border with cache of weapons
The Montreal Gazette reports that a Vancouver man named Oliver King was arrested in Washington state on May 19 with dozens of firearms, including a .50-calibre sniper rifle. U.S. and Canadian authorities are trying to determine what Oliver King intended to do with the cache of high caliber guns and ammunition he stashed in a storage locker in Ferndale, Washington.
In addition to a brand new Canadian passport, U.S. officials found a Canadian hunting licence in the name of Hamid Malekpour, a B.C. drivers' licence in the name of Oliver King , and a May 18, 2010, Canadian Post receipt in the name of Hamid Malekpour.
"King was born Hamid Malekpour in Tehran, Iran, in 1975. He appears to be using both names and we have not yet confirmed what is his legal name," the court documents say. U.S. officials said that the older of King's passport still had a valid visa for Iran and indicated King had traveled there as recently as March.
King (Malekpour) has pleaded not guilty in a Court in Seattle and a jury trial has been set for August 9. U.S. charges, as laid out, however, do not indicate a crime was committed on the Canadian side of the border because the guns never crossed the border. The charges are also so far not terrorism-related.
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