Terror suspect enters no plea

2002-01-02 20:34

Alexandria, Virginia - The first man to face trial for the September 11 terrorist onslaught on the US invoked Allah and refused to enter a plea here on Wednesday to conspiracy to murder thousands of Americans.

Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema set an October 14 trial date and entered pleas of not guilty to all charges on behalf of Frenchman Zacarias Moussaoui, accused of conspiring with Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network to carry out the Sepember 11 attacks.

"In the name of Allah, I don't have anything to plead. I enter no plea," said the bearded, balding Moussaoui, 33, dressed in a green prison jumpsuit.

"I interpret that as a plea of not guilty," said Judge Brinkema and Moussauoi's defence team agreed. Declining to plead is legally equivalent to entering a not guilty plea.

The judge then set the October trial date despite protests from Moussaoui's lawyers who said they needed more time to build their defence.

Moussaoui faces six charges, four of which may carry the death penalty on conviction, but prosecutors have until March 29 to decide whether to seek his execution.

The 19 hijackers who died in the September 11 attacks were named as co-conspirators in the indictment.

Those hijackers took control of four commercial aircraft on the morning of September 11, turning them into guided missiles in attacks on New York's World Trade Centre and the Pentagon outside Washington that left more than 3 100 people dead.

Moussaoui indicted on December 11

The US blames bin Laden for the attacks and launched a military campaign in Afghanistan on October 7 after the country's Taliban rulers refused to hand over the Saudi multimillionaire they had been sheltering since 1996.

The Taliban have since been overthrown and bin Laden remains a fugitive.

Moussaoui is charged with conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism, to commit aircraft piracy, destroy aircraft, use weapons of mass destruction, murder US employees and to destroy property.

Moussaoui was indicted on December 11, three months to the day after the 19 hijackers took control of four fuel-laded planes and used them as flying bombs in an elaborate terrorist plot.

Announcing the charges against Moussaoui, US Attorney General John Ashcroft said the defendant was believed to be "an active participant in this conspiracy" to kill thousands of people on September 11.

Investigators believe the Frenchman would have been the 20th hijacker had he not been in custody.

Moussaoui was arrested on August 16 in Minnesota on immigration charges and was transferred to New York after the attacks on the city and later to Alexandria, Virginia, just outside Washington, where he is being held in a secret location awaiting his October trial.

Born on May 30, 1968, in Saint-Jean-de-Luz in southwestern France, Moussaoui grew up in a Muslim family headed by a divorced mother who did not regularly practice her religion.

Moussaoui allegedly formed strong ties with extremists Muslims in London, where he lived during the 1990s.

Suspect wanted to train on Boeing 747 flight simulator

According to the indictment, on February 23 a heavy-set Moussaoui entered the US on a student visa with a shaven head and a goatee.

He signed up for classes at the Airman Flight School in Norman, Oklahoma to obtain a pilot certification. But he turned out to be such a poor student that the instructors refused to let him fly solo.

Moussaoui left for Minnesota and the Pan Am International Flight School, in Eagan.

There, he explained that he wanted to train on a Boeing 747 flight simulator, but only to learn how to turn, not how to land or take off. He offered $8 000 in cash for the privilege.

Troubled by Moussaoui's bizarre behavior, managers of the school called the authorities on August 13. He was taken into custody on August 16 and then questioned by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

His student visa had expired, and Moussaoui was detained by the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (INS) while he awaited deportation. The FBI questioned him but he refused to co-operate.

Moussaoui mother, Aicha el-Wafi, who arrived in the US from France last week to campaign on his behalf, did not attend Wednesday's hearing. - Sapa-AFP

- SAPA