Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, the filmmaker behind the controversial
“Innocence of Muslims” movie that has sparked days of rioting across the
Muslim world, has been arrested on suspicion of violating terms of his
probation, federal authorities said.
He is expected to appear in federal court Thursday afternoon.
Nakoula was convicted on bank fraud charges in 2010 and warned against misbehaving on the Internet. He was ordered not to own or use devices with access to the Web
without approval from his probation officer -– and any approved
computers were to be used for work only. "Defendant shall not access a
computer for any other purpose," according to the terms of his
probation.
There were also restrictions placed on him in enlisting others to get
on the Internet for him. Some speculated that Nakoula may have violated
those terms after the film trailer was loaded onto YouTube, although it
is unclear what exactly prompted the recent arrest.
Nakoula had been arrested in 2009 after federal agents searched his
home in Cerritos on suspicion that he had engaged in a scheme to create
fake identities and open credit cards in those names, then draw tens of
thousands of dollars from the phony accounts.
According to the court file, Nakoula operated under a dizzying array
of aliases, including Kritbag Difrat. In June 2010, he was convicted on
four counts, including bank fraud and identity theft, and was sentenced
to 21 months in federal prison. He was also ordered to pay $794,700.57
in restitution.
He was released, according to federal records, in June 2011.
Authorities interviewed Nakoula earlier this month amid the furor over the film. Actors have identified him as the filmmaker.
