BOSTON, MA — The Suffolk County District Attorney on Wednesday said his office has found an FBI agent and Boston Police officer's use of deadly force justified in the shooting of an alleged Boston terror suspect.

Usaamah Rahim was killed last summer in Roslindale during a standoff with a terrorism task force. Witness testimony backs up agents' claims that Rahim advanced toward them with a "large, military-style knife" before he was shot, District Attorney Daniel Conley said on Wednesday. Rahim, 26, of Roslindale, was accused of planning to behead police officers in Boston, an attack the FBI believed to be imminent. He also allegedly conspired with two other men, a plot that reportedly included a plan to behead anti-Islamic blogger Pamela Geller.

Rahim had been under surveillance by the Joint Terrorism Task Force prior his death for alleged ties to ISIS. Conley said Wednesday that task force investigators overheard a phone conversation indicating Rahim was deviating from the planned target (reportedly Geller), and intended instead to strike out on his own and attempt to kill Boston police officers. Task force members were under orders to prevent Rahim from getting onto public transportation or otherwise getting close to a "target-rich environment," Conley said.

When Rahim went to the bus stop toward the Forest Hills transit station, members of the task force moved in. Rahim pulled a knife, Conley said. "There is no question that the members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force had probable cause to arrest Mr. Rahim," he said. "In fact, knowing what they now did about his plans that day, they had the duty to stop him."



Task force members identified themselves, and repeatedly asked Rahim to drop the knife, as they retreated back through the parking lot, Conley said. Rahim continued advancing, ignoring their orders to drop his weapon, and asking, "Why don't you drop yours? ... Why don't you just kill me?" according to Conley.



He was shot in the torso by a Boston Police officer and an FBI agent, falling with the knife still in his hand, according to Conley. Rahim was taken to Brigham and Women's Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The DA's office based its findings on 18 civilian witnesses' corroborating statements, video surveillance footage from multiple angles, and interviews with the task force members and officers involved, Conley said. A 770-page report on the case has been released to connected parties and will be shared with the press. Several names are withheld, as the larger federal investigation into Rahim's alleged terrorist ties continues. The District Attorney said he's spoken with Rahim's family, and with leaders in the Boston-area Muslim community, of which Rahim was a part.