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Great White North

Man receives 2œ-year sentence for Toronto bomb plot involvement

2009-05-23

A man belonging to the so-called Toronto 18 terror group was sentenced to 2œ years in prison Friday, becoming the first person convicted in a domestic terrorism trial in Canada. The judge in Brampton, Ont., who sentenced the 21-year-old man declared that, with credit for his time already spent in custody, the man had served his time and could be freed. Sure, after all he promised not to kill anyone ever again, eh ... The man was found guilty in September 2008 of participation in a terrorist group that was plotting to blow up buildings in downtown Toronto. He was not a ringleader and his involvement included attending two terrorist training camps, shoplifting items from a Canadian Tire store and removing a surveillance camera. In passing sentence, Justice John Sproat described the man's crime as "very serious," but also noted he had expressed genuine remorse. In a letter to the court, the man promised to work hard to contribute to society and declared, "I do not believe in participating in violent acts against anyone." Except infidels and crusaders ... He was 17 at the time, so he was tried under youth justice laws. However, the judge found he had continued his activity with the terrorist group past his 18th birthday, so he was sentenced as an adult. He also given three years probation, prohibited from owning weapons for 10 years and ordered to submit a DNA sample. The media still cannot name him, because the judge granted a defence request Friday to keep the man's identity shielded for a month while his lawyers have the chance to appeal his conviction. Earlier this month, Saad Khalid, 22, pleaded guilty to aiding in the 2006 terrorist plot. He is expected to be sentenced in June. The 18 men and youths were arrested in the Toronto area and detained following an investigation by CSIS, Canada's spy agency. Seven of those accused have since had their charges stayed or dropped. The remaining individuals have yet to stand trial. The suspects face charges including participating in a terrorist group, receiving training from a terrorist group, providing training, and intending to cause an explosion that could cause serious bodily harm or death. The offences allegedly took place between March and June 2006 in Mississauga and a rural township near Orillia, Ont. The Crown alleges the group planned to bomb the CN Tower, the Toronto Stock Exchange and the Toronto CSIS office.

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Great White North

Canadian terror camp mole acted on his own, court told

2009-02-07

A police mole who infiltrated an alleged homegrown terror cell volunteered to attend a so-called terrorist training camp and act as the "eyes and ears" of the RCMP, an officer testified yesterday in a Brampton court. Sgt. John McIntyre said Mubin Shaikh was never tasked to go to the two-week camp in December 2005, which was frequented by members of a group known as the Toronto 18. "He was an informer in December, he was providing information to us," McIntyre told Superior Court Justice John Sproat. "To my knowledge he attended the camp on his own volition." McIntyre said he was "specifically" told to treat Shaikh as an informant, adding informants are "eyes and ears only. They are not to be directed." Supt. Jamie Jagoe, who at the time was in charge of national security investigations in the province, also testified yesterday. He, too, said that in late 2005 Shaikh was treated as an informant – a decision he "certainly agreed" with. Their evidence, along with that of other officers who have testified this week, supports the position of Crown prosecutors John Neander and Marco Mendicino, who argue Shaikh was not a state agent at the time of the camp. That designation, they say, came two months later when he signed a formal contract with the RCMP. Shaikh's status during the camp is the subject of a motion by defence lawyers Mitchell Chernovsky and Faisal Mirza, who allege their client was entrapped by Shaikh. He was found guilty in September and they are seeking to have his charge stayed. The accused was 17 at the time of the offence and attended the camp in Washago, Ont., which took place under the close watch of more than 200 covert officers. The defence have also argued Shaikh committed some of the same criminal acts their client is accused of. Court has heard Shaikh purchased supplies for the camp and provided transportation to it. Once there, he acted as a trainer, offered religious leadership, emphasized the militant nature of the jihad, helped set up military-style activities and provided firearms training with an illegal 9-mm gun.

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Great White North

Canadian guilty in plot to behead prime minister

2008-09-26

A Canadian man accused of participating in military exercises and firearms training as part of a group authorities say plotted to storm Parliament and behead the prime minister was found guilty Thursday. The man's attorney says the plot was a "jihadi fantasy" and that his client knew nothing about it. A judge ruled Thursday that evidence of a terrorist group was "overwhelming." The man is the first person to be found guilty of a terrorist offense in Canada since the country enacted anti-terrorism laws in 2001. The arrests of the 18 group members, known as the "Toronto 18," made headlines around the world and heightened fears in Canada, where people believe they are relatively immune from terrorist strikes. Prosecutors said there were plans to truck-bomb nuclear power plants and a building housing Canada's spy service. Seven of those arrested have since had their charges either withdrawn, or stayed. The trials of 10 adults, including the alleged ringleaders, have yet to begin. The young man was the first to go on trial. Superior Court Justice John Sproat found the man guilty of knowingly participating in a terrorist group. As the 94-page judgment was handed down, the defendant's mother wept quietly in the back of the court. The man has not been identified because he was 17, a legal minor, when he was arrested in 2006. He is now 20. Prosecutors argued he attended a training camp where he participated in military exercises and firearms training and that he knowingly participated in a potentially deadly conspiracy. He had pleaded not guilty to terrorism-related charges. Sproat rejected the defense argument that the plot was a "jihadi fantasy" that the defendant knew nothing about. "He clearly understood the camp was for terrorist purposes," he said. The defense had cast the plot as "musings and fantasies" with no possibility of being carried out. "It might well have been said prior to Sept. 11, 2001 that a plan to kill thousands and destroy landmark buildings in lower Manhattan and Washington had no possibility of implementation," Sproat said. Sproat rejected defense arguments that two camps organized by the alleged ringleaders were simply a religious retreat or recreational in nature. "Apparently benign activities may be used to identify and indoctrinate recruits," he said. Sproat called the young man an "acolyte" of the "charismatic" ringleader. Evidence was clear the youth listened carefully to his mentor, the plot's ringleader, and wanted to please him, and therefore understood what the camps were about, the judge said. Defense lawyer Mitchell Chernovsky said it's hard to know what sentence will be imposed but said his client was involved peripherally and doesn't have a criminal record. He faces a maximum 10-year sentence. Wesley Wark, a University of Toronto professor and national-security expert, said the guilty verdict is the first test of Canada's anti-terrorism legislation and that it shows its a tough law. "You can be convicted for terrorism even if nothing particular happens as a result of a plot, even if the plot looks amateurish, even if you didn't fully know the details of the conspiracy you were a part of," he said. The prosecution's star witness, Mubin Shaikh, infiltrated and spied on the alleged terror cell members before their arrests. Shaikh is a former Canadian army cadet. Shaikh said outside court that the youth should not have been found guilty. Shaikh called the man a "naive Muslim kid who fell into the wrong circle of Muslim kids. I don't believe he's a terrorist." Shaikh, however, was happy the judge found his testimony about the alleged ringleaders credible. Shaikh received about $300,000 for infiltrating the group. Sproat noted that the defense did not make any suggestion that the payments influenced Shaikh's evidence. Sproat said he found Shaikh to be a truthful and reliable witness, a development that doesn't bode well for the adults in their trials. "I've been telling the truth since day 1," Shaikh said. "I'm very happy that the judge validated that and confirmed that. That will carry through to the remaining adult trials."

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Great White North

Canadian terror suspect's fate rests on his own words

2008-08-09

Whether a youth was a naive, but pure-intentioned Muslim, or someone who had willingly joined a terrorist group, was left for one man to decide after arguments concluded yesterday in Canada's first terrorism trial. Interesting use of the word "pure". To claim that his intentions were pure can mean they were innocent, but it could imply that his intentions were undiluted by any consideration other than serving Islam. In which case, his intentions may be naive, but they are not necessarily innocent. From a mountain of background evidence presented in the case, it was the youth's own words in a police statement and a wiretapped conversation that Crown and defence lawyers debated in closing submissions to Mr. Justice John Sproat of Ontario Superior Court. The Crown alleges the youth, 17 at the time, was well aware that the men with whom he attended two alleged terrorist training camps were plotting a major domestic attack; tried to cover up his role in the group; and intended to wage jihad in Sri Lanka. The youth's lawyers argued that listening to him and watching his behaviour in a police interrogation showed that his only goal was to further his religious education. The now 20-year-old, who converted from Hinduism to Islam as a teen, is the first of the so-called Toronto 18 - now whittled down to 11 suspects - to face trial. Under the provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, the suspect cannot be identified. In a video statement played in court, RCMP Sergeant John Tost interrogated the youth shortly after his June, 2006, arrest about the alleged terrorist training camps and the alleged sleeper cell's intentions. But the soft-spoken youth appeared confused when the officer asked about an alleged bomb plot. "Hold on, hold on, before you go on. Bomb-making? We? We?" he asked, his brow furrowed. Defence lawyer Mitchell Chernovsky said his client's demeanour was genuine. "Nobody could stage that," the lawyer said. "He had no idea that bomb-making material was part of this." "If the shoe-bomb doesn't fit, you must acquit," Later in the June interrogation, the officer asked the youth when he last went camping with the alleged ringleader of the group. The youth answered December, although he had attended the second camp just two weeks earlier. Crown prosecutor John Neander said this demonstrated the youth's desire to cover up his involvement. Mr. Chernovsky said his client viewed the camps as religious retreats. Shortly before the May, 2006, camp, the RCMP intercepted a conversation between the youth and others in which they expressed a desire to travel overseas to defend oppressed Muslims. At first, defence lawyer Faisal Mirza dismissed the Crown's suggestion that the youth had jihadist leanings, noting he had only said he wanted to travel to Sri Lanka to visit his aunt. Later, the lawyer argued that even if the Crown's point was accepted, it did not implicate his client. Mr. Neander countered that just because the youth allegedly wanted to fight in another country, it didn't mean he was opposed to helping the ringleader carry out his alleged plans. Judge Sproat said he will deliver his verdict on Sept. 25.

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Great White North

Canadian terror suspect jailed after rejecting court system

2008-05-07

An Islamic convert facing terrorism charges was rearrested after trying to walk out of his own trial yesterday - saying simply that "I'm outta here" - after telling the court he wouldn't recognize Canadian law. I'll have to give that a try next time I'm arrested... The 20-year-old, who can't be identified because he was underage at the time of his arrest two years ago, had been released on bail. But he spent last night in jail, and his legal future is unclear. Oh. Well. If it worked that well, maybe I'll try something else. At the time proceedings broke down, a police officer had been on the stand, and the court was discussing the young man's mental status, including whether he was suicidal. "Officer Friendly, what was the defendant doing at the time you arrested him?" "He was frothing at the mouth and biting himself in the small of the back, yer honor!" The only youth among 11 Toronto area suspects accused of a variety of conspiracies is also the only one whose case has got to its trial phase. He faces charges of attending a terrorist training camp. The court has heard only preliminary motions so far, and has yet to delve into evidence or testimony. While on bail, the young man had been living with his Hindu parents. "Son, stop bonking your head on the floor and say 'ommm,' dammit!" A Toronto Muslim preacher told The Globe that the suspect had been coming to Friday prayers, saying that he would rather return to jail than live in a non-Islamic household. "He said, 'In jail, I can at least pray,' " "It ain't so much the head-bonking that bothers us, but he's our boy. We don't want him to explode." Aly Hindy, imam of the Salahuddin Islamic Centre in Scarborough, said in an interview. "I said 'Don't do this!' " Mr. Hindy said. "Oh, yasss! I was against it from the first!" He added that he counselled the young man to pray in secret, but tensions between the suspect and his father had reached a boiling point. The man's family did not comment last night. "We got nuttin' to say." Mr. Hindy added that the young man is "confused" and that "lots of young people, they need guidance." The young man had lately been expressing an interest in circumcising himself, the imam said, consistent with his understanding of what the Prophet Abraham had done. "Put your pee bug back in your pants and put the knife down!" After the youth announced that he was firing his lawyer and didn't recognize the court led by Mr. Justice John Sproat, officials urged him to reconsider. "You might want to think about that, Beauzeau. That's assuming you think, of course." Dan Brien, a spokesman for the federal prosecutors, said only that the suspect had been remanded into custody, but he would not be giving any further details. A hearing is scheduled for Monday.

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Great White North

Video calls for defeat of 'Rome' in Canadian terror case

2008-03-26

A speech glorifying acts of violence in the name of Allah given at an alleged terrorist training camp in Ontario encouraged a group of Toronto men to attack the West by decreeing that the "new Rome" must fall, according to evidence revealed yesterday in a Crown factum. "Rome has to be defeated. And we will be the ones that do it," reads a transcript of a call to arms given to more than a dozen recruits gathering inside a tent north of Toronto, according to trial evidence revealed yesterday. The speaker said they were the barbarians inside the gate of North America. Trying to motivate recruits, all wearing camouflage at the camp, the speaker said they were the barbarians inside the gate of North America. According to the Crown filings, he said: "This is our life's mission. And Allah has already purchased us, lives and our wealth in exchange for heaven." The jihadist exhortation - a centrepiece of the Crown's case that was recovered as police seized video from one of the suspects' computers - was entered in evidence yesterday. The documents were filed in a publication-ban motion as a trial began against a 20-year-old suspect in Brampton, Ont. The accused was rounded up with 17 others on June 2, 2006, and alleged to be part of the "homegrown" conspiracy that's become known as the case of the Toronto 18. At the time, a defence lawyer's quip - that his client stood accused of plotting to storm Parliament and behead the Prime Minister - garnered many headlines. But while one or more suspects were apparently caught on tape musing about the possibility of such an attack, there's never been any indication this was an actual plot. Charged with attending a terrorist-training camp in a wooded area north of Toronto, the accused was under 18 at the time of arrest. His identity is protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. Mr. Justice John Sproat of the Ontario Superior Court further shrouded details of the case yesterday, banning publication of any evidence that might identify 14 adult accused whose trials remain months or years away. They also stand accused of involvement in terrorist training. As well, half of the adults are accused of plotting multiple bombings against government targets, in an alleged bid to get soldiers of the Canadian Forces out of Afghanistan. Other evidence revealed yesterday involved conversations touching on detonators and bomb materials. But Judge Sproat asked that many of these details be placed under a publication ban, given that the young offender is not accused of that end of the conspiracy. (Charges against three other young offenders were dropped months ago.) Two Crown witnesses briefly attended proceedings yesterday. The star informant, Mubin Shaikh - outspoken about how he was a paid infiltrator who led military training at the camp - was told to be prepared to testify in late May. A new witness, a participant of a follow-up camp, has also agreed to testify for the Crown. Prosecutors will have to prove recruits were indeed learning terrorism, which makes the call-to-arms videotape transcript very significant. "We're going to kick it off man. We're here to get the rewards of everybody that's come after us," the speaker said. "God willing if we don't get a victory, God willing our kids will get it. If not them, then five generations down somebody will get it ..." He told the group their hearts must stay with the training camp, even when they returned to their jobs, families and schools. "You go back, you're living with society and you have to put on that face, you know, that we're a bunch of peace lovers," he said. The transcript indicates there was laughter in the tent. He continued: "So although our bodies will be with the non-believers roaming around going to work, trying to get money, sucking up to your boss and this and that ... [But] our mission is greater. Whether we get arrested, whether we get killed, whether we get tortured, our mission is greater than just individuals." Then, describing North America as a fortress designed to keep out Muslims, he pointed out that his group was already inside. "Here we are. We entered your lands, we already started striking cause you know what, this training is striking at them!" More transcripts at link.

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