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Two found guilty of JFK Airport bomb plot
Two Islamist militants have been found guilty of plotting to bomb New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport.
Published: 9:01PM BST 02 Aug 2010
Left, courtroom sketch of Russell Defreitas. Right, Abdul Kadir. Both men have been found guilty of plotting to bomb John F Kennedy International Airport in New York. Photo: AP
Russell Defreitas, 67, a US citizen born in Guyana, and Abdul Kadir, 58, of Guyana conspired to blow up buildings, fuel tanks and pipelines at the airport in the New York City borough of Queens. The men, who were arrested in June 2007, face up to life in prison.
Defreitas, who had worked at the airport, provided knowledge of its facilities and layout, US prosecutors said, while Kadir, an engineer, helped with technical aspects such as how to blow up the buried fuel pipelines.
Defense attorneys for the men portrayed them as all bluster and no substance. Prosecutors said Defreitas and Kadir did more than just talk and “took concrete steps to make this plan a reality.” Officials have said the plot was nowhere near being operational when the men were arrested.
This was the first case involving a plot against New York to go before a local jury since 2006. Two other men were arrested in the plot. Kareem Ibrahim of Trinidad and Tobago was deemed too ill to be tried but may face trial later. Guyanese Abdel Nur, 60, pleaded guilty in June to a separate charge of material support to terrorism and faces up to 15 years in prison.
