Illegal Jordanian migrants who ‘tried to breach’ Quantico base allowed to walk free after posting bail
The two illegal Jordanian migrants who are charged with trying to breach Marine Corps Base Quantico in May posted thousands of dollars in bail and were allowed to leave federal custody, The Post can exclusively reveal.
Hasan Yousef Hamdan, 32, and Mohammad Khair Dabous, 28, were released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention despite their immigration status — Hamdan had crossed into the country illegally in April and Dabous had overstayed his student visa and is subject to removal proceedings, law enforcement sources told The Post.
They were arrested on May 3 for trespassing onto the military installation and handed over to ICE officers because of their immigration statuses.
It’s still unknown why the men allegedly tried to get onto the base.
The site is home to the FBI Academy and FBI Laboratory, as well as a Defense Intelligence Agency facility and several major US Marine Corps commands — including the unit that flies the Marine One presidential helicopter.
“Big-time intel failure, security failure,” a federal law enforcement source told The Post.
“If it wasn’t an act of terrorism, why aren’t the government officials releasing the details of this? What was the intent?”
The men both posted bond in their ICE cases — with Hamdan’s set at $15,000 and Dabous’ set at $10,000 — and were released in early June, according to federal law enforcement sources.
Hamdan and Dabous were charged with misdemeanor trespassing on military property and appeared before a judge for the first time on July 22, when they were ordered released on the conditions that they show up to court for their?immigration proceedings and stay away from Quantico or other military bases, according to the court documents, which were first reported by Todd Bensman of the Center for Immigration Studies.
Federal prosecutors supported their releases on those conditions, according to the court documents.
Hamdan entered the US illegally via the southern border in San Diego in April, when he was released due to a lack of detention space, federal law enforcement sources told The Post.
Dabous was in the US illegally after overstaying his student visa, sources said.
They were issued citations for trespassing and told to appear in federal court in Alexandria on July 22, court papers show.
Magistrate Judge William B. Porter signed off on their release on the condition they continue to appear for future court dates in their criminal and immigration cases.
They must also refrain from trespassing on any government property, including the Quantico facility, court papers show.
The two Jordanian nationals lied to guards at Quantico and claimed they worked for an Amazon subcontractor and were there to make a delivery, Capt. Michael Curtis, a spokesman for the base, previously told The Post.
The officers quickly determined that the two had no business being there.
The men, who were in a box truck, ignored instructions of military guards and tried to drive onto the base before they were stopped by anti-vehicle barriers.
The incident drew the attention of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who requested that the Biden administration give a briefing on what happened, criticizing the federal government’s “failure to disclose the immigration status of those involved.”
“The Biden Administration’s failure to secure the border has brought this crisis to the front gates of our military installations,” Youngkin said at the time.
It took two weeks for top brass at Quantico to alert rank-and-file personnel of the attempted breach, Matt Strickland, 40, who had first flagged the incident to local new site Potomac Local News, previously told The Post.
“After I [raised the alarm], I had people who work at Quantico messaging me saying, ‘Holy f—k, when did this happen?,’” Strickland said.
“Two weeks after it happened, Quantico finally put an email out to employees on base letting them know.”
Curtis said the attempted entry “was reported immediately to required military officials.”
He added: “In any case determined to be an immediate threat to the base or its population, mass notification and other means are always used to notify all who work and live on Marine Corps Base Quantico.”
Criminal defense attorneys for Hamdan and Dabous didn’t immediately return requests for comment Wednesday.
The two accused have September court hearings scheduled.
Additional reporting by Priscilla DeGregory
