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“I believed everything they told me”: The woman who rented an apartment to 9/11 terrorists speaks exclusively to the BBC

From El Deber · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources In the courts
  • Holly Ratchford, who managed a San Diego apartment complex, has spoken publicly for the first time about her former tenant Omar al-Bayoumi and his links to two September 11 hijackers.
  • Bayoumi introduced Ratchford to two men who later hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 and crashed it into the Pentagon.
  • Bayoumi is now central to a $1 trillion lawsuit brought against Saudi Arabia by thousands of September 11 victims’ families and survivors.

“I believed everything they told me.” Holly Ratchford says she has spent 25 years haunted by her connection to three men associated with the September 11 attacks.

I believed everything they told me.

· Holly RatchfordThe headline quotes Ratchford reflecting on her relationship with the men connected to the September 11 attacks.

Ratchford managed the Parkwood residential complex in San Diego, California, where Omar al-Bayoumi moved with his family in September 1999. The Saudi national, then around 40, lived in apartment 152 and soon became a regular at the pool parties Ratchford organized. She remembers him as cheerful, smiling and extremely kind. His family also invited her to meals, and she enjoyed visiting them.

Months later, Bayoumi introduced Ratchford to two men she remembers as quiet and polite. They became her neighbors and would later be identified as the hijackers of American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks.

It is almost impossible for me to reconcile the image of who he said he was with who he really is. I still struggle to take it in.

· Holly RatchfordRatchford describes her difficulty reconciling Bayoumi’s public persona with his alleged connection to the attacks.

Ratchford says Bayoumi deceived her from the beginning. “It is almost impossible for me to reconcile the image of who he said he was with who he really is. I still struggle to take it in,” she told the BBC.

He always seemed very cheerful and smiling.

· Holly RatchfordRatchford recalls Bayoumi’s behavior while he lived at the apartment complex.

On September 11, 2001, 19 al-Qaeda members hijacked four passenger planes. Two hit the World Trade Center towers in New York, one struck the Pentagon near Washington, and a fourth crashed in a Pennsylvania field after passengers resisted. Nearly 3,000 people died, including about 300 firefighters and other emergency workers involved in rescue efforts at the World Trade Center. Bayoumi is now at the center of a $1 trillion lawsuit against Saudi Arabia filed by thousands of victims’ families and survivors.

I enjoyed the visits.

· Holly RatchfordShe recalls visiting Bayoumi’s family after they invited her to meals.
About this summary

Originally published by El Deber in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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