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Miami men 'plotted to overthrow US'
Seven men plotted to bring down the US government by poisoning saltshakers and bombing landmark buildings, a prosecutor told Miami jurors as their terrorism conspiracy trial opened today.The "Liberty City Seven" aimed to create chaos as part of a holy war to pave the way for al-Qaeda-affiliated guerrillas to take over the United States, Assistant US Lawyer Richard Gregorie said in the prosecution's opening statement. "We need to make the people go crazy in the streets," Mr Gregorie quoted alleged ringleader Narseal Batiste as saying. "Allah is going to take over through us." Defence lawyers said the charges were "nonsense" scripted by the government and orchestrated by paid FBI informants they called Conman No.1 and Conman No.2. They said the defendants, one of whom was devoted mainly to smoking marijuana, had no weapons or intent to do violence and that it was the informants who suggested poisoning restaurant saltshakers and blowing up buildings. The "Liberty City Seven," named for the poor part of Miami where they gathered in a rundown warehouse, were arrested in 2006 on charges of plotting to blow up Chicago's 110-story Sears Tower - the tallest US skyscraper - along with several FBI offices and the Miami federal court complex where they are on trial. The young men face up to 70 years in prison if convicted on all four conspiracy counts in a case government officials have touted as an important victory in the war against terrorism. But federal agents said when they were arrested that the group's plans were "aspirational rather than operational" and posed no real threat because they had neither al-Qaeda contacts nor means of carrying out attacks. The government's main evidence is drawn from 15,000 audio and videotaped conversations made by the informants. One infiltrated the group and introduced the other, a purported al-Qaeda operative from Yemen, as a friend of his uncle. "Unknown to Mr Batiste, it's Uncle Sam," Gregorie said. Batiste's lawyer, Ana Jhones, portrayed him as a would-be religious leader who aspired to big things but lacked intellect and ability. He pretended to go along with the informants, she said, because he was trying to con them out of $US50,000 ($56,000) to turn the decrepit warehouse into a community gathering place. Posted by: Oztralian 2007-10-02 |
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