A former high-level Obama administration intelligence official has guaranteed the bail for the New York City lawyer who is accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at an NYPD vehicle. Salmah Rizvi, who worked in both the Departments of State and Defense, told the judge that the firebombing suspect is her "best friend."
Urooj Rahman was one of three people arrested this weekend, who were accused of trying to destroy NYPD vehicles. According to charging documents,
Rahman tossed a Molotov cocktail at an empty police cruiser that was parked outside the 88th Precinct station house in Fort Greene around 1 a.m. Saturday.
Surveillance video captured Rahman getting into a tan van driven by Colinford Mattis, a furloughed associate of the York-based law firm Pryor Cashman and a member of Community Board 5 in East New York. Police arrested the two suspects after a brief chase in Brooklyn. In the van, police found a lighter, a bottle filled with toilet paper, and a gas tank.
Rahman was also accused of distributing incendiary devices to other rioters. Rahman and Mattis were charged with intentionally damaging a police vehicle with fire and explosives. They both face mandatory minimum sentences of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison. Rahman's bail was set at $250,000.
Rahman, 31, is registered as an attorney in New York state and graduated from Fordham University School of Law. Rahman is friends with Rizvi, who served in the Defense Department and State Department during the Obama administration and currently an associate at the law firm Ropes & Gray, as reported by the
Washington Free Beacon.
"Urooj Rahman is my best friend, and I am an associate at the law firm Ropes & Gray in Washington, D.C.," Rizvi told the judge, according to a transcript of the proceedings. "I earn $255,000 a year."
Rizvi agreed to be a surety for Rahman's bail, making her liable for the entire $250,000 amount if Rahman fails to obey the court's orders. U.S. District Judge Margo Brodie granted Rahman bail due to the "willingness of family and friends to sign on as suretors," according to
Law360.