The attorney for alleged Al Qaeda sleeper agent Ali al-Marri said Tuesday he hopes that what his client endured for five years will never be repeated in the United States. "Hopefully, I think you have seen the end of it," Andy Savage told reporters after his client appeared in federal court for an initial hearing on terrorism charges.Marri was turned over to civilian authorities earlier in the day after being held in a nearby Navy brig as an enemy combatant without charges since 2003. President Barack Obama last month ordered Marri surrendered to civil authorities after he was indicted in Peoria on charges of providing material support to terror and conspiracy.
Marri, a 43-year-old native of Qatar, is expected to enter a formal plea in Illinois. However, Savage will argue in court next week that Marri should be released on bond.
The government has said Marri met with Osama bin Laden and volunteered for a suicide mission or whatever help Al Qaeda wanted. A Bradley University graduate, Marri arrived in the U.S. on Sept. 10, 2001.