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Terror suspect to plead innocent
02/01/2002 10:14 - (SA)
Alexandria, Virginia - Zacarias Moussaoui, the first individual charged as an
accomplice in the September 11 attacks, has decided to plead innocent
to charges that he conspired to kill and maim thousands of victims,
his lawyer said.
"We will be entering a plea of not guilty to all of the charges
in the indictment," public defender Frank Dunham, one of three
defence attorneys, said prior to Moussaoui's arraignment on Wednesday in the US District Court, where security was expected to be
extraordinarily heavy.
At least a dozen US marshals were in the courtroom on December 19
when Moussaoui, who had just been transferred from detention in New
York, appeared before a federal magistrate to hear the charges
against him read. Security personnel also ringed the federal court
building.
If convicted, four charges in the six-count indictment could
result in Moussaoui's execution, and US District Judge Leonie
Brinkema set a March 29 deadline for prosecutors to decide whether
they would seek the death penalty.
'My son can prove his innocence'
Moussaoui's mother, Aicha el-Wafi, came to the United States
from France last week and said her son had told her he could prove
his innocence. The defendant, 33, is a French citizen of Moroccan
descent who received a master's degree in England.
Although Moussaoui has been in federal custody on immigration
charges since August, when he aroused suspicions at a Minnesota
flight school, the indictment says he had conspired with the September 11 hijackers to kill and maim victims in the United States. While
accusing him of links to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network, the
indictment does not specifically explain his role in the terror
attacks.
Nonetheless, Attorney General John Ashcroft called Moussaoui an
"active participant" with the 19 hijackers who crashed four
jetliners in New York, Washington and western Pennsylvania, killing
more than 3 000 people.
The indictment accuses Moussaoui of pursuing some of the same
activities as the hijackers, by taking flight training in the
United States, inquiring about crop dusting and purchasing
flight-deck training videos.
The indictment also said Moussaoui had received money in July
and August from Ramzi Bin al-Shibh, an alleged member of a German
terrorist cell who was a roommate of Mohammed Atta, the suspected
ringleader in the attacks. The FBI says it believes Bin al-Shibh
may have been planning to be the 20th hijacker.
TV cameras in court?
A clear indication of the case's importance was Senate passage
of legislation to broadcast the trial on closed-circuit television
in the cities most affected by the hijackings.
The House has not yet acted on the measure, which is modeled on
a similar privilege granted to Oklahoma City bombing victims and
families.
Cameras usually are not permitted in federal courtrooms, but a
US cable network has challenged that rule as unconstitutional and
filed a motion to broadcast the proceedings. Brinkema set a January 9
hearing for Court TV's motion and gave the prosecution and defence
until January 4 to make their positions known.
The indictment contends that Moussaoui was present at the
al-Qaida-affiliated Khalden Camp in Afghanistan. By the end of
September 2000, it says, he was making parallel moves to some of
the hijackers with his flight lessons, crop dusting interest and
training-video purchases.
He attended the Airman Flight School in Norman, Oklahoma,
between February 26 and May 29, 2001, but ended his classes early.
From France, but can't speak French?
By August 10, the indictment said, he was attending the Pan Am
International Flight Academy in Eagan, Minnesota, for simulator
training on a Boeing 747 Model 400. Among his possessions was a
computer disk with information related to the aerial application of
pesticides.
Moussaoui was detained by federal authorities on August 17, two
days after the instructor at the academy contacted the FBI.
According to news reports, Moussaoui aroused suspicion because
he didn't seem to understand French - although he said he was from
France. Suspicions were sharpened because of Moussaoui's limited
flying skills. He couldn't fly solo despite his previous lessons in
Oklahoma.
The specific charges are: conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism
transcending national boundaries; commit aircraft piracy; destroy
aircraft; use weapons of mass destruction; murder US employees
and destroy US property. Conviction on the first four counts
carry a maximum penalty of death, while the last two counts have a
maximum of life imprisonment. - Sapa-AP
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