A Somali man who admitted that he trained with terrorists in Somalia and helped construct a terrorist training camp was released from jail on Thursday pending sentencing.
Abdifatah Yusuf Isse, 25, pleaded guilty to supporting terrorists and has been cooperating for months with investigators working on the case of up to 20 Minneapolis men who returned to jihad in Somalia. He was released after agreeing to pay $25,000 if he does not appear in court when required. U.S. District Judge James Rosenbaum, who has been presiding over the cases of Isse and others indicted, agreed to Isse's release last Friday, according to court documents.
Isse is believed to be the first of the Somali men charged and jailed for aiding terrorists to be released.
He will be sent to a halfway house and will have to wear electronic monitoring equipment, according to conditions set by Rosenbaum.
Isse was one of the first men indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of providing material support to terrorists and conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim or injure. Since then, 14 men have been indicted or charged in one of this country's largest counterterrorism investigations since 9/11. Four of the men, including Isse, have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. Others are missing and are presumed to have fled to Somalia.
Isse, of Seattle, Wash., was arrested Feb. 24, 2009, at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. At the time, he said he was going to Tanzania to participate in an internship. He had previously left Minneapolis for Somalia in December 2007.
His attorney, Paul Engh, argued in court papers for Isse's release, noting his cooperation with authorities and the seemingly endless time until sentencing.
On Thursday, Engh would only say: "This kind of case takes a lot longer to complete than the ordinary. His hard incarceration was no longer necessary, in light of the attendant delays."
Source:startribune.com/
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