at 6:00 p.m. pdt, the Freeper FRiva Feva contest will begin
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it's easy, just follow the directions - shouldn't take more than 10 - 15 minutes per night
Posted on 06/26/2002 3:05:01 PM PDT by knighthawk
An Algerian man with alleged links to a plot to blow up the U.S. embassy in Paris told a court Tuesday he won't fight a request for his extradition to the Netherlands.
Court documents identified the man as Amine Mezbar, a resident of Canada since April 2000. He was known in previous news reports as Adel Tobbichi, which Dutch authorities have called an alias.
Mezbar, aged 34 according to Dutch court documents, showed little emotion as he waived his right to an extradition hearing, meaning he could be handed over to the Dutch following a review by a Quebec judge.
"(If he waives extradition) he's then subject to being sent to the Netherlands as quickly as the Netherlands can get personnel over here to take custody of him,'' said James Brunton, a lawyer for the Canadian government.
Mezbar, who was arrested in Montreal last Friday, will return to court Thursday.
Dutch prosecutors have charged Mezbar with several counts, including conspiracy to detonate an explosive, conspiracy to commit murder and stealing and falsifying passports.
Also charged in the Netherlands in connection with the plot are Jerome Courtailler, 27, of France, Abdelghani Rabia, 30, of Algeria, Saad Ibrahim, 23, of Eritrea and Algerian Rachid Ahmed Zouaoui, 44.
The Dutch say the men are all linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist network, accused of conspiring to bomb European targets.
French investigators said the group planned to blow up the American embassy in Paris this spring, with Tunisian Adel Traboulsi slated to be the suicide bomber.
The group was also allegedly planning to attack NATO targets in Belgium.
The alleged Paris plot was foiled when police in four countries launched raids after the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington D.C.
The Dutch say Mezbar was fingered as a supplier of false passports by Courtailler, Rabia and a suspect in a French investigation.
Mezbar's lawyer, Gaetan Bourassa, said Tuesday his client wanted a prompt transfer to the Netherlands because he was concerned about intense Canadian media coverage of his arrest.
"Even if he's able to beat the extradition hearing his life would be finished here anyway,'' Bourassa told reporters.
According to the Dutch extradition request, Mezbar's main role was to provide an array of forged documents, including passports and driver's licences, to the terrorist cell that was plotting the embassy bombing.
Brunton said no Canadian passports were forged or stolen and there was no indication Mezbar plotted terrorist acts from Canada.
Mezbar allegedly lived with two of the accused men, Courtailler and Rabia, at a Rotterdam apartment in 2000 and 2001.
The residence was raided on Sept. 19, 2001, days after the attacks in the United States.
Police in Rotterdam allegedly found a total of 60 stolen documents from various European countries in two residences, as well as equipment to produce forged documents.
Among the documents were 26 passports, 10 driver's licences and 24 other identification documents.
Also seized were videos and other material showing speeches by bin Laden, information on the placing of land mines and a news item on the attack on the USS Cole.
Court documents also indicate fingerprints identified as Mezbar's were found in 1997 and 1999 at four Dutch residences where Moroccan and Australian passports had been stolen. The passports were recovered during the Sept. 13 police raid.
The legal papers state Mezbar was known by three other aliases: M.M. Prajasemita, J.P.D. Straebler and Adel Tobbichi. Different birthdates are listed for each of the names and Brunton said he didn't know the suspect's real name.
The extradition order filed by the Canadian government said Mezbar was considered to be a flight risk.
Patrick Charette, a spokesman for the Justice Department, explained Tuesday that Mezbar's use of aliases suggested he could have attempted to evade authorities had he not been arrested promptly.
"When you have an individual with at least two names, he'd be considered an individual that could change identity,'' said Charette.
Mezbar was arrested at his place of work by the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team, which was set up after the Sept. 11 attacks.
The team, which has offices in Montreal, Vancouver, Toronto and Ottawa, includes investigators and intelligence analysts from the RCMP, the Quebec and Ontario provincial police and major metropolitan police departments.
Any Pim news? Or about that Rotterdam police station?
at 6:00 p.m. pdt, the Freeper FRiva Feva contest will begin
join the contest to win your registration fees to the FRiva Las Vegas Conference
it's easy, just follow the directions - shouldn't take more than 10 - 15 minutes per night
The smeat campaign continues...
Oh, the new government is alomst official.
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