A trial of suspects belonging to three separate terror cells (No. 14, 67 and 86) resumed at a special criminal court in Riyadh yesterday.
Defendant No. 4 from cell No. 14 pleaded with the judge to allow him to use a lawyer appointed by his brother in his defense. The court tried seven defendants who received a copy of the charges after the public prosecutor read them out. The public prosecutor urged the judge to award capital punishment to five of the suspects.
Four defendants from cell No. 86 were on trial yesterday. The charges against Defendant No. 3 included embracing terrorist ideology and joining Al-Qaeda, inciting sedition, taking part in terror attacks, kidnapping a number of Americans, targeting military bases in Al-Kharj, attempts to possess weapons, possession of tear gas as a ploy to escape from capture, and sodomizing a fellow member of Al-Qaeda at a rest house after leasing it.
The public prosecutor read out charges against Defendant No. 4, and these included donating cash amounting to SR 45,000 to carry out terror attacks, launching endowments to support terror acts, supporting Al-Qaeda in accordance with a religious edict (fatwa) issued by a hardcore extremist ideologue in the Kingdom and setting up a terrorist training camp at a farm in Buraidah.
He was also accused of providing transport to a terrorist, setting up a terrorist cell in Jeddah, possession of weapons and 10 bombs and rocket-propelled grenades, in addition to misusing charity societies to collect funds for terror cells.
Charges against Defendant No. 5 included leasing a hide-out for terrorists, and taking part in the plot to attack Riyadh’s Al-Mohya residential compound as well as in a party to celebrate the successful operation of the Al-Mohya attacks.
There are several charges against Defendant No. 6 including funding Al-Qaeda, harboring Al-Qaeda terrorists at his house, receiving SR 5,000 for setting up a warehouse for weapons at his house, recruiting two people for Al-Qaeda, providing transport to a terrorist, shooting at security personnel during a raid on a villa located in King Fahd district in Riyadh, and encouraging his brother to take up arms against security men after sustaining bullet wounds in a shootout with the security forces. He was also accused of transporting explosives in a vehicle and placing them near Al-Malaz stadium. The prosecutor general urged the judge to award the death penalty to the four terror suspects.
Terror suspect accused of sodomy
