A Superior Court judge has meted out the lightest sentence to date among the adults convicted in the Toronto 18 terrorism plot.
Asad Ansari, 25, became a free man yesterday after receiving six years and five months — the equivalent of time served — for his participation in the group, which plotted devastating attacks in Toronto and Ottawa. The offence carries a maximum jail term of 10 years.
“While Mr. Ansari’s involvement in the offence was serious, it is not at the most serious end of the scale,” Justice Fletcher Dawson asserted in his 12-page ruling.
Ansari has been out on strict house-arrest bail for more than a year awaiting trial and sentencing. Taken on a two-for-one basis, his sentence is equivalent to the almost three years and three months he spent in pretrial custody. Judge Dawson, who also handed Ansari three years of probation, said it would be an “unjust hardship” to return him to prison at this juncture.
Ansari’s sentence is the lightest among the adults convicted in the Toronto 18 plot, though one youth received less time, having been released on time served more than a year ago.
After a lengthy joint trial with another co-accused, Ansari was convicted in June of participating in the Toronto 18, which planned to storm Parliament and detonate truck bombs in downtown Toronto. Authorities dismantled the homegrown cell in June 2006.
In his ruling, Judge Dawson pointed out Ansari was not charged in the bomb plot, and said his involvement in a terrorist training camp in the winter of 2005 was “more limited” than that of other group members.
During that camp, the court has heard, participants wore camouflage clothing and engaged in paramilitary drills.
“I am satisfied that once [Ansari] was there, the nature of the camp would have been apparent to him,” Judge Dawson said, rejecting testimony from Ansari, who said he was unaware of any terrorist implications.
“The jury obviously found that Mr. Ansari’s testimony was not credible,” Judge Dawson said. “I must say I reached the same conclusion.”
The Crown has painted Ansari as the group’s technical expert, one who helped edit video footage of the training camp and cleared malicious software from ringleader Fahim Ahmad’s computer. Judge Dawson said it was clear Ansari “pledged his computer skills for the benefit of the group.”
Ansari, who strolled out of court yesterday with his mother, declined to comment on the ruling. His lawyer, Breese Davies, lauded the judge’s “fit sentence” but said her client would be appealing his conviction within 30 days.
“He gave an innocent explanation [for his involvement in the group] and he maintains that position,” Ms. Davies said. Still, she added, “we are glad that this part is over. He can focus on moving on with his life.”
Upon hearing of the ruling, Public Safety Minster Vic Toews issued a statement highlighting the government’s recent decision to end the practice of granting convicts two-for-one credit for pretrial custody.
“Part of keeping our communities safe is keeping dangerous criminals behind bars, not releasing them into our streets early… Canadians believe this is unacceptable, and our government will continue to put the rights of victims ahead of the rights of criminals,” Mr. Toews said.
Ansari is one of the final Toronto 18 members to be sentenced. Ringleader Ahmad is to be sentenced this month, with Steven Chand and Shareef Abdelhaleem following in November. Seven of the group members were released without charges, and seven others have been convicted and sentenced.
*** Minister Toews and the CONservative party has no credibility in trying to use this as a proof of any sort about their worth in the national security file. The solution is not to jail everyone forever and ever while ignoring and neglecting the CAUSES that give rise to radicalization leading to terrorism. If you want to keep applying band-aids - you'll only end up looking like my 5 year old kid who does the same thinking that by applying all those bandaids, he is healed.
This CON government has done NOTHING to convince me of their sincerity in dealing with the scourge of homegrown radicalization we are facing. They are being opportunist (as usual) and here is their latest example. MS ***
Showing posts with label lawyer john norris asad ansari. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lawyer john norris asad ansari. Show all posts
Monday, October 4, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
TORONTO 18 ASAD ANSARI GETS TIME SERVED
*** A bit player goes home. MS ***
BRAMPTON — One of the final men convicted in the Toronto 18 terrorist plot is set to become an officially free man next week.
Asad Ansari, 25, was convicted in June of participating in the terrorist group, which plotted to storm Parliament and detonate powerful truck bombs in downtown Toronto.
“He was the technical expert of Fahim Ahmad’s terrorist group,” Crown attorney Sarah Shaikh said this morning during Ansari’s sentencing hearing in Superior Court. Ringleader Ahmad, 26, is also embroiled in sentencing proceedings today.
Both the Crown and the defence are calling for Ansari to be sentenced to time served, and Justice Fletcher Dawson has indicated he will accept their submissions. His formal decision will come down Oct. 4.
With two-for-one credit taken into account, Ansari has effectively served six years and five months of prison time. He has been on strict house-arrest bail since August 2009, and Justice Fletcher Dawson said it would be “a real hardship” to send him back to prison at this juncture.
“I think that would be unfair,” Judge Dawson said, noting “it’s obvious [Ansari] is taking steps to undergo his education and rehabilitate himself.”
Defence lawyer John Norris said his client has been taking courses and is “moving his life once again in a very positive direction.”
Ansari has been characterized in court as a minor player in the Toronto 18 plot. He attended a terrorist training camp in the winter of 2005, but says he did not know its true purpose at the time.
The Crown disputes that contention, pointing to various militaristic activities at the camp and the presence of a black-and-white jihadi-style flag.
“When he saw the black flag… He certainly would have known by that time that he was attending a terrorist camp,” Ms. Shaikh said.
She also pointed to evidence of how Ansari, a technical whiz, assisted Ahmad by clearing terrorist material and malicious software from his computer: “He essentially wiped [it] clean.”
The defence and the Crown are both recommending a three-year probationary term for Ansari, but there is some dispute over how stringent the conditions should be — a matter the judge will resolve when he hands down his final decision next Monday.
Read more: http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/09/27/toronto-18s-asad-ansari-to-be-sentenced/#ixzz10lYa7lZo
BRAMPTON — One of the final men convicted in the Toronto 18 terrorist plot is set to become an officially free man next week.
Asad Ansari, 25, was convicted in June of participating in the terrorist group, which plotted to storm Parliament and detonate powerful truck bombs in downtown Toronto.
“He was the technical expert of Fahim Ahmad’s terrorist group,” Crown attorney Sarah Shaikh said this morning during Ansari’s sentencing hearing in Superior Court. Ringleader Ahmad, 26, is also embroiled in sentencing proceedings today.
Both the Crown and the defence are calling for Ansari to be sentenced to time served, and Justice Fletcher Dawson has indicated he will accept their submissions. His formal decision will come down Oct. 4.
With two-for-one credit taken into account, Ansari has effectively served six years and five months of prison time. He has been on strict house-arrest bail since August 2009, and Justice Fletcher Dawson said it would be “a real hardship” to send him back to prison at this juncture.
“I think that would be unfair,” Judge Dawson said, noting “it’s obvious [Ansari] is taking steps to undergo his education and rehabilitate himself.”
Defence lawyer John Norris said his client has been taking courses and is “moving his life once again in a very positive direction.”
Ansari has been characterized in court as a minor player in the Toronto 18 plot. He attended a terrorist training camp in the winter of 2005, but says he did not know its true purpose at the time.
The Crown disputes that contention, pointing to various militaristic activities at the camp and the presence of a black-and-white jihadi-style flag.
“When he saw the black flag… He certainly would have known by that time that he was attending a terrorist camp,” Ms. Shaikh said.
She also pointed to evidence of how Ansari, a technical whiz, assisted Ahmad by clearing terrorist material and malicious software from his computer: “He essentially wiped [it] clean.”
The defence and the Crown are both recommending a three-year probationary term for Ansari, but there is some dispute over how stringent the conditions should be — a matter the judge will resolve when he hands down his final decision next Monday.
Read more: http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/09/27/toronto-18s-asad-ansari-to-be-sentenced/#ixzz10lYa7lZo
Monday, June 7, 2010
ASAD ANSARI - NOT ACTIVE MEMBER of TORONTO 18?
FROM: http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/06/07/toronto-18-accused-ansari-not-an-active-member-trial-hears/
Asad Ansari, one of the final two accused in the “Toronto 18″ terrorism case, was unaware of the group’s bomb plot and did nothing intentionally to further it, a Superior Court jury heard on Monday.
In his closing address, defence lawyer John Norris said while there was evidently a terrorist group in operation between 2005 and 2006, Mr. Ansari was not an active participant — despite attending a winter training camp in Washago, Ont.
“Nothing that Mr. Ansari did has crossed the line into criminality,” Mr. Norris said. The court has heard Mr. Ansari viewed the camp as a simple bonding exercise, and was not present for some of the darker activities, such as group leader Fahim Ahmad’s speech calling for the destruction of western society.
There is no evidence Ahmad, described as a “big talker,” ever revealed his terrorist ambitions to Mr. Ansari, the jury heard, though the two often discussed Mideast politics in the aftermath of 9/11. This is because Ahmad, who pleaded guilty to terrorism charges last month, knew he would not be able to recruit Mr. Ansari, Mr. Norris contended.
“Mr. Ansari wouldn’t be recruited to his cause because he disagreed with [Ahmad] and made no secret of that,” Mr. Norris said.
Michael Moon, counsel for the second remaining accused, Steven Chand, will deliver his address next, followed by the Crown.
This is the first jury trial in Canadian history to deal with terrorism charges.
Asad Ansari, one of the final two accused in the “Toronto 18″ terrorism case, was unaware of the group’s bomb plot and did nothing intentionally to further it, a Superior Court jury heard on Monday.
In his closing address, defence lawyer John Norris said while there was evidently a terrorist group in operation between 2005 and 2006, Mr. Ansari was not an active participant — despite attending a winter training camp in Washago, Ont.
“Nothing that Mr. Ansari did has crossed the line into criminality,” Mr. Norris said. The court has heard Mr. Ansari viewed the camp as a simple bonding exercise, and was not present for some of the darker activities, such as group leader Fahim Ahmad’s speech calling for the destruction of western society.
There is no evidence Ahmad, described as a “big talker,” ever revealed his terrorist ambitions to Mr. Ansari, the jury heard, though the two often discussed Mideast politics in the aftermath of 9/11. This is because Ahmad, who pleaded guilty to terrorism charges last month, knew he would not be able to recruit Mr. Ansari, Mr. Norris contended.
“Mr. Ansari wouldn’t be recruited to his cause because he disagreed with [Ahmad] and made no secret of that,” Mr. Norris said.
Michael Moon, counsel for the second remaining accused, Steven Chand, will deliver his address next, followed by the Crown.
This is the first jury trial in Canadian history to deal with terrorism charges.
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