Former property manager breaks silence on 9/11 hijackers' ties to alleged Saudi spy
A woman who managed a San Diego apartment complex where Saudi national Omar al-Bayoumi and two future 9/11 hijackers lived has spoken publicly for the first time. Her account raises questions about the version of events Bayoumi gave investigators.
Holly Ratchford, who managed the Parkwood Apartments complex in San Diego, California, in 1999, has for the first time spoken publicly about her contact with two men who later became hijackers in the 11 September 2001 attacks. Her account features in a BBC Radio 4 podcast and an upcoming BBC Panorama documentary.
In September 1999, Saudi national Omar al-Bayoumi moved into the complex with his family, presenting himself as a student, though he was mainly organising religious activities in the local Muslim community and frequently filming. In February 2000 he brought two men to Ratchford's office, introducing them as acquaintances from his mosque — Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar. Because they did not meet the income requirements, Bayoumi became the guarantor on their lease and helped them open a bank account. The two men moved into an apartment near Bayoumi's home and lived there until May 2000.
After the 11 September 2001 attacks, in which Hazmi and Mihdhar hijacked a plane that crashed into the Pentagon, FBI agents contacted Ratchford, who handed over the guarantor paperwork. This triggered an investigation into Bayoumi, who by then had relocated to the UK and was arrested by London police shortly after the attacks. Bayoumi initially denied knowing the hijackers before later admitting he had helped the two men.
Bayoumi is now a central figure in a roughly $1 trillion lawsuit brought against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by thousands of families of 9/11 victims and survivors. A year ago, a federal judge in New York ruled that evidence supported a reasonable inference that Bayoumi and a Saudi diplomat had coordinated assistance to the hijackers with the Saudi government, allowing the case to proceed. Saudi Arabia is appealing the ruling, and both the kingdom and Bayoumi continue to deny any involvement.
