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Bail denied to American accused of terror link

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published June 3, 2007

NEW YORK - A federal judge ordered a man held without bail while he awaits trial on charges that he provided al-Qaida fighters with equipment to attack U.S. soldiers.

Syed Hashmi, a 27-year-old former New York resident, was arrested in England last spring after one of his alleged collaborators began cooperating with British authorities. Last week, Hashmi became the first terrorism suspect extradited to the United States by British authorities.

On Tuesday he pleaded not guilty to being part of a conspiracy to equip Islamic fighters and help them stay warm and dry while battling U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

Hashmi, who was born in Pakistan but became an American citizen as a child, maintains that he is a nonviolent intellectual and had no knowledge of any schemes being hatched by militants he met while living abroad.

His attorney, Sean Maher, asked U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska on Friday to allow his client to await trial under house arrest at his parents' home in Queens.

"He is not going to be a threat to anyone in the community, " Maher said.

Preska rejected the request after prosecutors argued that Hashmi was an extremist who opposed secular rule in the United States and joined a political organization that raised money for Hezbollah and Hamas.

If convicted, Hashmi could face decades in prison.

[Last modified June 3, 2007, 02:12:32]