DATE=12/22/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=U-S TERRORISM / PLEA (S-L)
NUMBER=257415
BYLINE=ALISHA RYU
DATELINE=LOS ANGELES
CONTENT=
Intro: Ahmed Ressam, the Algerian man arrested last
week by U-S authorities in the western state of
Washington, pleaded innocent Wednesday to charges that
he tried to bring explosive materials into the United
States from Canada. VOA's Alisha Ryu has details from
our West Coast Bureau.
Text: Ahmed Ressam appeared before U-S District
Judge John Weinberg to enter his pleas. Speaking
through an Arabic interpreter, Mr. Ressam said he was
innocent of all five federal charges filed against
him. The accusations include making false statements
to U-S customs inspectors; transporting explosives;
and smuggling bomb-making nitroglycerin across the
border.
Mr. Ressam nodded yes when asked if he understood the
meaning of his pleas. The judge ordered him to remain
in custody without bail after Assistant U-S Attorney
Francis Diskin argued the material found in Mr.
Ressam's car was enough to build a powerful bomb and
that Mr. Ressam posed a threat to the community.
If convicted on all five counts, Mr. Ressam could face
up to 40 years in prison and a fine of more than one
million dollars.
// Rest Opt for long //
U-S customs officials stopped Ahmed Ressam last
Tuesday after he entered Port Angeles, Washington
state on a ferry from Victoria, Canada. Officials say
the man was carrying two jars of nitroglycerin and
more than 50 kilograms of other potentially explosive
material in his rented car.
Investigators say they have not yet determined what
Mr. Ressam's motive might have been.
His arrest, and the arrest of another Algerian man at
the Canadian border in the eastern state of Vermont
Sunday, has heightened fears of terrorism in the
United States. The U-S State Department has already
issued warnings of possible terrorist attacks against
Americans overseas during the holiday season. (Signed)
NEB/PT
22-Dec-1999 20:44 PM EDT (23-Dec-1999 0144 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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