Denmark convicts first Isis foreign fighter
The Local Denmark - [email protected]
Published: 22 Jun, 2016 CET.
Updated: Wed 22 Jun 2016 13:54 CET
A 24-year-old man on Wednesday became the first ever person in Denmark to be convicted on terror charges for joining the Islamic State, the extremist group also known as Isis or Daesh.
The 24-year-old was identified as a Danish-Turkish man from the Copenhagen suburb of Ishøj.
The Glostrup City Court on Wednesday convicted the man of having joined Isis in Syria in 2013. He was also found guilty of having purchased an airline ticket to return to Syria in 2015. The man was arrested before he could leave Denmark.
The 24-year-old was convicted on three separate charges that fall under Denmark’s terrorism law, which allows for a maximum six year sentence for "letting oneself be recruited to commit acts of (terrorism)”.
The court found that the man had travelled to Syria in 2013 and joined the terror group as a foreign fighter. He also received military training from the group and supported Isis financial with 20,000 kroner.
According to a report from broadcaster DR, the man admitted in court that he joined the terror group in Syria but claimed that he was not a fighter, but rather a baker for the extremists.
The court, however, did not buy that explanation.
“There is no evidence or testimony in the case which confirms or supports the defendant's statement about working at a bakery, cooking and delivering meals. The accused's explanation about his stay [in Syria] was also inconsistent and in several respects unclear and illogical,” the court’s judgement stated, according to DR.
Prosecutor Anders Riisager told news agency Ritzau that he would push for the maximum six-year sentence.
“We are talking about the most gruesome terror organization in the world,” he said.
Riisager said he would also ask the court to strip the man of his Danish citizenship, which he obtained at the age of seven.
The 24-year-old was born in Denmark to Turkish parents and has dual citizenship.
Earlier this month, convicted terrorist Said Mansour became the first person ever to lose Danish citizenship for committing criminal activity.
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The 24-year-old was identified as a Danish-Turkish man from the Copenhagen suburb of Ishøj.
The Glostrup City Court on Wednesday convicted the man of having joined Isis in Syria in 2013. He was also found guilty of having purchased an airline ticket to return to Syria in 2015. The man was arrested before he could leave Denmark.
The 24-year-old was convicted on three separate charges that fall under Denmark’s terrorism law, which allows for a maximum six year sentence for "letting oneself be recruited to commit acts of (terrorism)”.
The court found that the man had travelled to Syria in 2013 and joined the terror group as a foreign fighter. He also received military training from the group and supported Isis financial with 20,000 kroner.
According to a report from broadcaster DR, the man admitted in court that he joined the terror group in Syria but claimed that he was not a fighter, but rather a baker for the extremists.
The court, however, did not buy that explanation.
“There is no evidence or testimony in the case which confirms or supports the defendant's statement about working at a bakery, cooking and delivering meals. The accused's explanation about his stay [in Syria] was also inconsistent and in several respects unclear and illogical,” the court’s judgement stated, according to DR.
Prosecutor Anders Riisager told news agency Ritzau that he would push for the maximum six-year sentence.
“We are talking about the most gruesome terror organization in the world,” he said.
Riisager said he would also ask the court to strip the man of his Danish citizenship, which he obtained at the age of seven.
The 24-year-old was born in Denmark to Turkish parents and has dual citizenship.
Earlier this month, convicted terrorist Said Mansour became the first person ever to lose Danish citizenship for committing criminal activity.
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