9.Sonya Petri — Direct/Cross/Direct

SONYA PETRI: My name is Sonya Petri, S-O-N-Y-A, P-E-T-R-I.

SONYA PETRI: Sorry. Thanks. Let me know.

SONYA PETRI: Good afternoon.

SONYA PETRI: Federal Defender's Office in Boston.

SONYA PETRI: I am a paralegal.

SONYA PETRI: Almost a year exactly.

SONYA PETRI: I cannot.

SONYA PETRI: Yes.

SONYA PETRI: It is an FBI 302.

SONYA PETRI: Correct.

SONYA PETRI: It's a report of investigation that the FBI creates after interviewing a witness or someone involved in a case.

SONYA PETRI: Yes.

SONYA PETRI: Thousands.

SONYA PETRI: Magomed Dolakov.

SONYA PETRI: It took place on April 30th, 2013, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

SONYA PETRI: Sure. M-A-G-O-M-E-D.

SONYA PETRI: D-O-L-A-K-O-V.

SONYA PETRI: Correct.

SONYA PETRI: Yes, it does.

SONYA PETRI: It was -- I'm having a little trouble seeing the document.

SONYA PETRI: Yes, I believe it does.

SONYA PETRI: Filbert III, William O.; and Brown, Timothy D.

SONYA PETRI: Correct.

SONYA PETRI: I presume.

SONYA PETRI: Sure. (As read:) Dolakov was born in Mozdok, Russia. Dolakov and his mother ended up moving to Moscow in 2002 to 2003 due to conflicts in the area between the Chechens and the Russian government. Dolakov recalled the FSB would go around and just kill people. Dolakov's father was a CEO at some type of oil company and did not move with them. Dolakov went to the Mephi University in Moscow where he received a degree in physics.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov entered the United States on June 16, 2012. Dolakov went straight to Houston, Texas, where his sister works and resides. In approximately July of 2012, Dolakov moved to Cambridge, Mass. Dolakov is looking to get into a master's program at MIT but is not currently enrolled at MIT. Dolakov frequents the MIT library and the Cambridge Public Library to study, which he does every day.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov returned to Moscow in November of 2012 because his sister was getting married and his mother was having surgery. While in Moscow, Dolakov had an encounter with the Russian police and the FSB. Dolakov advised that he was sitting in front of his home talking with his friend Gaisanov in his car. It was around 12:30 a.m. in the morning. Dolakov advised that the police pulled them out of the car and searched them and asked them what they were doing. Dolakov still does not know why the police had stopped them.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov advised that before he left Russia the first time, he had another contact with the police and FSB. This occurred sometime in 2011. While in Moscow, Dolakov would attend a mosque located on Minskaya Street. Dolakov described the mosque as not radical and advised that there are much more radical mosques in Moscow. Dolakov was walking home from the mosque when he was stopped by the police and taken back to the police station. Dolakov was fingerprinted and his photograph was taken. Dolakov believes that the government was harassing him and his friends. Dolakov advised that neither of his friends have radical or extremist beliefs in Islam.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov advised that the above events are why he came to the United States and applied for asylum. Dolakov advised that he "knew Tamerlan." Dolakov met Tamerlan at the Prospect Street Mosque around August 2012. Dolakov was talking to a Somali male, and told the Somali male where he was from in Russia. The Somali male advised that he would have to introduce Dolakov to Tamerlan, who is from the same area and speaks the same language. Dolakov and Tamerlan eventually met later that August, possibly around the 15th or the 20th of August, during the celebration of Eid.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov recalled that when they first met, Tamerlan was wearing a traditional, all white robe, which is worn by Muslims during holy holidays. On the day they met, Tamerlan and Dolakov went to Starbucks and talked about Islam. Dolakov advised that he could tell from their first meeting that Tamerlan was radical in his views on Islam. Dolakov stated that he has met a lot of radicals in Moscow, and that Tamerlan acted and spoke the same way they did. Dolakov got the impression that Tamerlan did not appreciate anything that Dolakov was saying and was not open to any other beliefs. Dolakov talked about the importance of math, science and studying, but Tamerlan did not feel that any of these things were important. Dolakov advised that their conversation was not hostile but they clearly did not have the same opinions on Islam and what it means to be a good Muslim.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) When Dolakov and Tamerlan were leaving the Starbucks, an unknown male stopped Tamerlan and asked about his white robe. Tamerlan explained to the male about the purpose of the robe. The male advised that he was Jewish and Tamerlan began to argue with the male. Dolakov recalled that Tamerlan was becoming physically aggressive toward the male and the male eventually left. Dolakov argued with Tamerlan about how Tamerlan should be more kind when expressing his beliefs about Islam. Dolakov advised that Tamerlan was not screaming at the male but was being very forceful with him.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov met Tamerlan again the very next day. Tamerlan drove to Dolakov's apartment in Somerville and picked Dolakov up. Dolakov could not remember the street address for his apartment in Cambridge, Mass. Dolakov recalled that Tamerlan was driving a Honda CR-V. Tamerlan took Dolakov to a mosque located south of the city of Boston and close to a beach. Dolakov believes the mosque was the Quincy mosque, but he was not sure.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) When they got to Tamerlan's home, Tamerlan's wife, Katherine, was there. Dolakov recalled that they continued to talk about Islam, and Tamerlan continued to express his radical views on Islam.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Tamerlan told Dolakov that the men who were fighting the Russian military, the mujahidin, were brave. Tamerlan told Dolakov that "he was going to join the mujahidin." Tamerlan told Dolakov that when he had gone back to Dagestan, he had wanted to join the mujahidin. Dolakov argued with Tamerlan, advising him that the war was not easy and that a lot of innocent people were dying. Dolakov told Tamerlan that he had a wife and a child and responsibilities. Dolakov recalled asking Tamerlan what if his daughter had to grow up without a father. Dolakov did not understand why someone would marry an American woman and have a beautiful child and still desire to join these groups. I'm sorry. Can you move the sheet up a little bit?

SONYA PETRI: Thank you.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov does not remember if Tamerlan knew or had friends that were fighting, or if Tamerlan had family that was fighting.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov talked to Tamerlan about a bomber in Ingushetia, spelled I-N-G-U-S-H-E-T-I-A, that had attacked a funeral and killed a lot of innocent people. Dolakov tried to argue that it was not normal for someone to do that, but Tamerlan said that the bomber was right, another "sign" that Tamerlan was a radical. It was also during this encounter that Dolakov found out that Tamerlan was from Dagestan, not Chechnya. This upset Dolakov because Tamerlan would not really understand what the war and fight was really about.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov had seen the results of the fighting and the war, and tried to explain to Tamerlan that there was a lot of blood and death, but Tamerlan never listened to Dolakov.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov did not see Tamerlan again until January of 2013.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) In January 2013, Dolakov returned to the United States from Russia. Dolakov started going to the Prospect Street Mosque again, and eventually ran into Tamerlan praying. Dolakov advised that they were sometimes speak at the mosque, but they did not hang out outside of the mosque.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov once asked Tamerlan if he was working. Tamerlan advised that "Allah sent him money." Tamerlan also told him that his wife works and he, Tamerlan, takes care of their child.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov advised that on April 12, 2013, Dolakov went to the Prospect Street Mosque to pray. Dolakov believed that it was around 12 p.m. Dolakov saw both Tamerlan and his brother, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, at the mosque praying. Dolakov recalled that Dzhokhar seemed to be ill because he had a runny nose. Dolakov did not know they were going to be at the mosque that day. After prayer, Dolakov asked Tamerlan if he was still "training." Tamerlan said he was. Dolakov asked about Tamerlan's gym and told Tamerlan that he needed to get in shape before the summer comes. Dolakov asked Tamerlan if he could take Dolakov to the gym sometime and help him train. Tamerlan suggested they all go right then. Dolakov advised that he really did not want to go right then, but that Tamerlan was persistent. Dolakov told Tamerlan that he did not have any workout clothes, and Tamerlan stated that Dolakov could use some of his clothes.

SONYA PETRI: April 12, 2013.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov finally agreed, and the three of them, Dolakov, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar, went to Tamerlan's home so Tamerlan could get his gear. Dolakov advised that when they got to Tamerlan's house, Dolakov stayed in the car, and Tamerlan and Dzhokhar went inside to get their stuff. Dolakov advised that they were in the home for about 10 to 15 minutes. When they returned to the car, Dolakov observed Tamerlan grab a pair of sneakers out of a gold minivan that was parked in front of the house.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov recalled that in the CR-V there was a medium-sized cardboard box in the rear driver's side passenger seat. Tamerlan told Dolakov that he was sending the box to his mother in Russia and that it was full of clothes. Tamerlan moved the box from the backseat and put it in the rear of the CR-V on top of a white sheet that was covering items in the trunk of the car. Tamerlan also put his gym bag in the back of the CR-V with the box.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Tamerlan then drove the three of them straight to the gym in Allston, Mass. Tamerlan parked his car on the Brighton Avenue near the gym and the three entered the gym. Dolakov believes they got to the gym around 3 p.m. and stayed for approximate two hours. While at the gym, Tamerlan was working a clock by the boxing ring, and Dolakov was hitting a bag. Dolakov advised that he was using boxing gloves that Tamerlan gave him. Dolakov advised that Dzhokhar was doing his own thing and was very quiet. Dolakov advised that Dzhokhar was always very quiet and often just listened rather than saying much.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) After Tamerlan was done shower and changing --

SONYA PETRI: The first full paragraph?

SONYA PETRI: Thank you. (As read:) After Tamerlan was done shower and changing, the three of them went and got something to eat at a halal restaurant.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Tamerlan drove straight from the restaurant to Dolakov's apartment.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov advised that they didn't really speak much that night. Dolakov recalled that they talked a little about music, but they never spoke about America or the marathon. Dolakov advised that that was the last time he saw Tamerlan or Dzhokhar.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov advised that since seeing Tamerlan in 2013, he seemed to be the same person with the same beliefs that he had in August of 2012 when they first met.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) At about 11 p.m. on April 30, 2013, agents met Dolakov at the Starbucks in Harvard Square.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) While sitting with the agents, Dolakov recalled that when he was in the car with Tamerlan and Dzhokhar, he and Tamerlan were arguing about Islamic knowledge and if you need to learn Arabic to have a true understanding of the Qur'an or if you can read it in other languages and understand it the same. Tamerlan said that it did not matter what language you read the Qur'an in, you can still understand it and learn from it. Dolakov believed to truly understand the Qur'an, you need to learn it in Arabic. Tamerlan also told Dolakov that there was a lot of knowledge on the Internet. Dolakov told Tamerlan there is also a lot of rubbish on the Internet. Tamerlan told Dolakov about two websites, Hunafa and the Kavkazcenter. Tamerlan said that he recommended these websites to visit and thought that they were a good database for the knowledge about Islam. Dolakov believes that Hunafa and Kavkazcenter may be jihadi websites.

SONYA PETRI: That is another FBI 302.

SONYA PETRI: It is also an interview with Magomed Dolakov.

SONYA PETRI: It does.

SONYA PETRI: May 21, 2013.

SONYA PETRI: In Cambridge, Massachusetts.

SONYA PETRI: William O. Filbert III, and James B. Bailey.

SONYA PETRI: It appears at the apartment of Dolakov.

SONYA PETRI: Okay. (As read:) Dolakov believes that the only time he saw Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was the Friday before the marathon. Dolakov thought that he may have seen him once before during a Friday prayer, but he could not remember. The only time Dolakov talked to Dzhokhar was on the Friday when they went to the gym. Dolakov advised that Dzhokhar did not really speak when he was with his brother Tamerlan. The only time Dolakov and Dzhokhar spoke was at the gym when Tamerlan was showering.

SONYA PETRI: Yes, it is.

SONYA PETRI: It is also an interview with Magomed Dolakov.

SONYA PETRI: June 11, 2013.

SONYA PETRI: Brighton, Massachusetts.

SONYA PETRI: Yes, it does. At a Starbucks Coffee on Soldier's Field Road.

SONYA PETRI: It appears to be conducted by Craig E. Ring and maybe Bailey, James B., or James B. Bailey. I don't know.

SONYA PETRI: Yes.

SONYA PETRI: June 11, 2013.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov advised in August 2012 he went to a mosque in Quincy, Massachusetts, with Tamerlan Tsarnaev, and Tsarnaev and Dolakov went to the mosque in Tsarnaev's --

SONYA PETRI: Yes, there is.

SONYA PETRI: Sorry. "And," and end of sentence. (As read:) Tsarnaev and Dolakov went to the mosque in Tsarnaev's Honda CR-V and arrived in a minivan taxi.

SONYA PETRI: Sure.

SONYA PETRI: Should I read that sentence again?

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Tsarnaev and Dolakov went to the mosque in Tsarnaev's Honda CR-V, and, blank, arrived in a minivan taxi. Following the prayers at the mosque, Dolakov, Tsarnaev and, blank, ate lunch at the mosque, and then went to, blank's, residence to drop off his taxi. All three of them then traveled in the Honda CR-V to a beach in Quincy, Massachusetts. They stayed at the beach for approximately one or two hours waiting for their friends.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Dolakov recalls discussing a suicide bombing with Tsarnaev during their time at the beach. A police officer in Ingushetia was killed, and during his funeral a suicide bomber came and blew himself up, killing a number of other individuals. Dolakov saw no reason for this senseless violence, but Tsarnaev considered the police officer, his friends and his family all kefir, or non-believers, in Islam. Following their time at the beach, Dolakov, blank, and Tsarnaev drove in the Honda CR-V to Tsarnaev's residence in Cambridge, Massachusetts. At Tsarnaev's home, Dolakov and Tsarnaev watched jihad videos, blank. While he was there, Dolakov met Tsarnaev's wife, Katherine, who was preparing dinner. The interaction with Katherine was only a minute or two, and when it was time to eat, Tsarnaev served the food while his wife went to a different room. Tsarnaev's mother was not at the apartment; she was doing social work for some old people.

SONYA PETRI: Good afternoon.

SONYA PETRI: Uh-huh. Yes.

SONYA PETRI: Certainly. (As read:) After they were finished working out, Tamerlan went to take a shower. While Tamerlan was in the shower, Dolakov saw that Dzhokhar was using an iPhone 5. Dolakov started asking Dzhokhar about school. Dolakov believed that Dzhokhar told him that he was majoring in mechanical engineering. Dzhokhar also told him that he wanted to visit Russia and was tired of America.

SONYA PETRI: It's an FBI 302.

SONYA PETRI: The interview of Viskhan Vakhabov.

SONYA PETRI: April 20, 2013.

SONYA PETRI: In Allston, Massachusetts.

SONYA PETRI: Jeffrey F. Hunter.

SONYA PETRI: At Vakhabov's residence.

SONYA PETRI: Certainly. (As read:) Vakhabov was born in Kurchaloy, Chechnya. His parents sent him to Kazakhstan to finish school because his school in Chechnya was destroyed during the second Chechen war. He resided in Kazakhstan for approximately three years. After leaving Kazakhstan and prior to moving to the United States, he resided in Azerbaijan for approximately one year. Vakhabov and his family (father, mother, brother and sister) departed Azerbaijan utilizing a United Nations program to come to the United States in --

SONYA PETRI: -- 2004. Sorry, December 2004. (As read:) The United Nations program placed Vakhabov and his family in Chelsea, Massachusetts.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Vakhabov's brother, Israpil Vakhabov, attends the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (UMass Dartmouth) with Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

SONYA PETRI: Okay. (As read:) Vakhabov met Tamerlan Tsarnaev and his family in Roxbury, Massachusetts, within two or three months of being in the United States. Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are brothers and were residing in the same house when Vakhabov first met them. Vakhabov's parents know Tamerlan Tsarnaev's parents. Tamerlan Tsarnaev's father is from Chechnya and his mother is from Dagestan. He is not sure where Tamerlan Tsarnaev was born; however, Tamerlan Tsarnaev has a Dagestani accent. Tamerlan Tsarnaev's parents left the United States and returned to Russia.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Vakhabov and Tamerlan Tsarnaev used to go out and have fun. They would smoke, drink and go to clubs. Tamerlan Tsarnaev introduced Vakhabov to some of his "weed" smoking friends in Cambridge. Many years ago, Tamerlan Tsarnaev gave Vakhabov a "moderate" version of the Qur'an. However, as of approximately two years ago, Vakhabov noticed a change in Tamerlan Tsarnaev's behavior. Tamerlan Tsarnaev told Vakhabov that a true Muslim would not go out and smoke and chill out. Tamerlan Tsarnaev told him that just because you say you are a Muslim, it does not mean that you really are.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Approximately one year ago, Tamerlan Tsarnaev traveled from the United States to Dagestan. Tamerlan Tsarnaev telephonically contacted Vakhabov one time from Dagestan. Vakhabov does not know the purpose of Tamerlan Tsarnaev's travel to Dagestan. Tamerlan Tsarnaev's father was residing in the United States during the time period Tamerlan Tsarnaev traveled to Dagestan. Tamerlan Tsarnaev's father told Vakhabov that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was in Chechnya, and that Tamerlan Tsarnaev had not been there since he was a little baby. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was at UMass Dartmouth during the time period that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was traveling overseas.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) After being in Dagestan for four to five months, Tamerlan Tsarnaev returned to the United States approximately six months ago.

SONYA PETRI: Beginning with "he"?

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) He has spoken with Tamerlan Tsarnaev approximately four to seven times since Tamerlan Tsarnaev has returned to the United States. Tamerlan Tsarnaev would tell him that extremist violent jihad was the proper path.

SONYA PETRI: (As read:) Approximately four weeks ago, Vakhabov provided a ride home from UMass Dartmouth for his brother, Israpil Vakhabov, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Upon arriving at Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's home, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev invited Vakhabov inside. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev told Vakhabov that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was inside and wanted to speak with him. Vakhabov did not want to go inside because he felt Tamerlan Tsarnaev was likely to try to teach him about religion or to criticize his religious practices. Vakhabov attempted to telephonically contact Tamerlan Tsarnaev from his vehicle outside the residence. However, Tamerlan Tsarnaev's number was disconnected, and Vakhabov deleted the number from his cellular telephone.