Phila. police officer testifies at Fort Dix trial

Inquirer staff writer Troy Graham reports:

A Philadephia Police sergeant testified this morning that Fort Dix defendant Serdar Tatar approached him in November 2006 to tell him that a man he knew from his mosque had been pressuring him for a map of the base.

Tatar's family owned a pizzeria near Fort Dix and kept a map in the restaurant for deliveries.

Sgt. Sean Dandridge said he called the FBI immediately to report what Tatar had told him.

Prosecutors said that, by the time Tatar reached out to Dandridge, he had already supplied a map to Mahmoud Omar, a paid FBI informant, and agreed to take part in an armed attack on the base.

The defense argued that Tatar was sincere in his concerns when he approached Dandridge about a "matter of national security."

"He looked upset," Dandridge said.

"He looked terrified, didn't he?" asked Tatar's attorney, Richard Sparaco.

"Yes, he did."

Tatar is one of five foreign-born Muslims, raised in South Jersey, accused of plotting an attack on Fort Dix. Prosecutors said the men planned to use a pizza delivery pass from Tatar's family's restaurant to get on the base and then open fire on soldiers.

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