When a federal magistrate specifically asked Sami Al-Arian whether any extra promises were made to him in exchange for his 2006 guilty plea to assisting a terrorist group, Al-Arian offered a simple response: "I don't recall anything else."
He made no mention of any deal with prosecutors exempting him from giving future grand jury testimony, a transcript shows.
What's more, the former University of South Florida professor even offered to cooperate with the government after receiving a subpoena compelling his testimony in a terrorism financing probe in Virginia, federal prosecutors said in a recent court filing.
The revelation of Al-Arian's May 2006 offer to assist the government's Virginia investigation undermines his argument to U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Va., that he had an unwritten understanding with prosecutors barring grand jury testimony.
The government has repeatedly said prosecutors reached no such deal with Al-Arian, a former operative of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group.
Nonetheless, in a hearing Monday, Brinkema expressed skepticism about the government's position, saying the "integrity of the Department of Justice" plea agreement process was at stake. She granted Al-Arian 10 days to file a motion to dismiss a pending criminal contempt indictment. Read more ...
He made no mention of any deal with prosecutors exempting him from giving future grand jury testimony, a transcript shows.
What's more, the former University of South Florida professor even offered to cooperate with the government after receiving a subpoena compelling his testimony in a terrorism financing probe in Virginia, federal prosecutors said in a recent court filing.
The revelation of Al-Arian's May 2006 offer to assist the government's Virginia investigation undermines his argument to U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Va., that he had an unwritten understanding with prosecutors barring grand jury testimony.
The government has repeatedly said prosecutors reached no such deal with Al-Arian, a former operative of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group.
Nonetheless, in a hearing Monday, Brinkema expressed skepticism about the government's position, saying the "integrity of the Department of Justice" plea agreement process was at stake. She granted Al-Arian 10 days to file a motion to dismiss a pending criminal contempt indictment. Read more ...
Source: IPT News
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