Thaindian News

New York, Mar 16 (ANI): A federal court in Brooklyn has charged a Canadian Ferid Imam on 10 counts, including helping Najibullah Zazi and others travel to Pakistan for attaining terrorist training in a plot to bomb the New York City subway in 2009.

The Christian Science Monitor quoted the court documents as saying that Imam, also known as Yousef, had played a crucial role in helping Zazi, Zarein Ahmedzay, and Adis Medunjanin to travel from Newark, to New Jersey, and finally to Pakistan’s Waziristan region for attaining training and explosives from the Al Qaeda.

In late 2008, the training was reportedly designed to facilitate an alleged bombing campaign in New York, but US officials dismantled it before it was launched.

Both Zazi and Ahmedzay were arrested and have pleaded guilty.

Ahmedzay had reportedly told investigators that Imam had helped them in attaining training in Pakistan.

“As today’s charges demonstrate, we will not rest in our pursuit of those responsible for plotting terrorist attacks,” US Attorney Loretta Lynch said in a statement.

Janice Fedarcyk, Assistant Director in charge of the FBI’s New York Field Office, said the three men already charged with conspiring to set off bombs in New York “were also charged with receiving overseas training to accomplish that nefarious goal. Among other alleged acts of terrorism, Ferid Imam helped them get that training,”

Imam is charged with providing material support to a group identified by the US government as a terrorist organization, and also charged with aiding and abetting the receipt of military-style training of the three men by Al Qaeda. If convicted, he faces from 30 years to life in prison.

In addition to the charges unsealed in New York, Canadian officials announced that terror conspiracy charges had been filed in Canada against Imam.

Imam is believed to have left Canada in 2007 for Pakistan. Currently, his whereabouts are not known. (ANI)