Bombshell: Underwear Bomber Calls Haskell As Defense Witness
"...It is outrageous! It's outrageous to the extent that the media is going to in order to cover-up this story. This should be a bombshell front page story everywhere across the United States. They are doing their best to hide it -- not cover it at all and paint me as a nut... ...I'm going to tell the truth and I am going to expose everything that there is in this case... ...is Bin Laden also an undercover U.S. intelligence officer?... ...you can see where this is going...you just keep pulling the string and pretty soon everything unravels. That's how big this story could be. Huge. Huge...."--- Kurt Haskell
Bombshell: Underwear Bomber Calls Haskell As Defense Witness
Detroit lawyer saw well-dressed man aid Abdulmutallab through security
Paul Joseph Watson - Infowars.com - Monday, October 10, 2011
http://www.infowars.com/bombshell-underwear-bomber-calls-haskell-as-defense-witness/
In a shocking development in the trial of the accused underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, Delta Flight 253 eyewitness Kurt Haskell has been called by Abdulmutallab as a witness for the defense, a move that could blow the whole case wide open.
Detroit Lawyer Haskell has been a prominent skeptic of the government’s official version of events, having witnessed a well-dressed man help Abdulmutallab clear security before the incident on Christmas Day 2009 despite the fact that the bomber had no passport, in addition to the fact that his own father had warned U.S. intelligence officials of the threat posed by Abdulmutallab a month before the attempted attack.
It later emerged that the State Department was ordered not to revoke Abdulmutallab’s visa by “federal counterterrorism officials” ( http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=17505 ) even though the accused bomber had known terrorist ties.
Haskell maintains that Abdulmutallab was carrying a fake bomb and was the unwitting dupe in a case of government entrapment.
“Chambers indicates that I may be the only defense witness called,” writes Haskell on his blog. ( http://haskellfamily.blogspot.com/2011/10/looks-like-ill-be-witness-for-defense.html ) “How ironic is it that I will have Umar’s life in my hands just as Umar had my life in his hands (or underwear) on Christmas Day 2009? I will be up to the task. I realize that some may not agree with me and may attempt to harm me. Nevertheless, I will speak the truth and not be intimidated. I will do this for the common good of all of the citizens of the United States.”
Abdulmutallab’s court “outbursts,” in which he shouts clichéd rhetoric about the mujahadeen, Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda, suggest that he is being coached on how to behave and what to say, suggests Haskell. The outbursts are in complete contradiction to how he behaved during the Flight 253 incident, Haskell told the Associated Press. ( http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/airline-attack-suspect-starts-trial-outburst-14667214 )
“I saw him before boarding and he never said anything, I’ve seen him in court several times, and I even saw him when he lit his fake bomb and his crotch was burning and he never makes a peep. This is totally out of character for him,” Haskell told AP writer Ed White, although White later edited the quote.
During his interview on the Alex Jones Show today, Haskell pointed out that if Abdulmutallab chooses to reveal what he knows about the entire plot, it could be more damaging to the Obama administration than the Fast and Furious scandal, and would undermine the entire foundation of the war on terror and the TSA grope downs and body scans that were introduced in the aftermath of the event.
Abdulmutallab could reveal which intelligence agents gave him the dud bomb, while also lifting the lid on the role of Anwar al-Awlaki, who as we have documented ( http://www.prisonplanet.com/al-qaeda-mastermind-invited-to-pentagon-after-911.html ) was clearly a double agent posing as an Al-Qaeda leader while doing the bidding of the US intelligence community.
Aware that his involvement in the case and his assertions of government complicity in the aborted attack could put his life in danger, Haskell made it clear on air that he was not planning on committing suicide.
http://www.infowars.com/bombshell-underwear-bomber-calls-haskell-as-defense-witness/print/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFdjkGqK4oY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d3gdRrT1E&feature=youtube_gdata
( At the end of the 2nd video, Kurt Haskell mentions how the prosecutors office had hid evidence in a previous terrorist trial.)
See http://911blogger.com/news/2011-10-06/kurt-haskell-looks-ill-be-witness-defense-underwear-bomber-case#comment-253723
...In 2003, two North African immigrants were convicted of providing material support and resources to terrorists, but the convictions were thrown out at the request of the U.S. Attorney’s Office after it discovered prosecutors had withheld evidence favorable to the defendants.
One of the prosecutors in the case was tried and acquitted of prosecutorial misconduct.
The government’s star witness in that case was a convicted credit card thief of questionable credibility.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TIMELINE AND RUNNING RECORD
http://911blogger.com/node/22270
For new readers, here are a few early news stories:
Last Updated: December 29. 2009 2:47PM
Flight 253 passengers believe others involved in plot
Paul Egan The Detroit News
http://detnews.com/article/20091229/METRO01/912290365/Flight-253-passengers-believe-others-involved-in-plot
Taylor -- A Taylor attorney who was aboard a terrorist-targeted Christmas Day flight to Detroit says he was not surprised to hear al-Qaida claim responsibility for the attempted bombing Monday because he does not believe the man now in federal custody acted alone.
Kurt Haskell said he and his wife, Lori, were playing cards near the boarding gate in Amsterdam when he saw a well-dressed man who appeared to be of Indian descent come to the assistance of the man he later learned was Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. The 23-year-old Nigerian was having trouble boarding the plane he is accused of trying to blow up because he had no passport, Haskell said.
"I think what I saw was his handler ... getting him on the plane," said Haskell, who was returning from a safari in Uganda.
The Indian man, who looked about 50 years old, told ticket agents Abdulmutallab did not have a passport but needed to get on the plane, the Haskells said.
The ticket agent told the man nobody was allowed to board without a passport, to which the well-dressed man replied: "We do this all the time; he's from Sudan," Lori Haskell said, adding she and her husband believe the man was trying to pass Abdulmutallab off as a Sudanese refugee.
The two were then directed down a corridor to talk to a manager, she said.
"This meant nothing to me until this man tried to blow up the plane," Kurt Haskell said.
Abdulmutallab is charged with attempting to destroy an aircraft and placing a destructive device aboard an aircraft. He allegedly had chemical explosives concealed under his clothing. His attempt to detonate them as the plane approached Detroit created a fire, but he was restrained by passengers and flight crew who put out the blaze, federal authorities say.
The FBI and federal prosecutors would not comment Monday on the Haskells' story, but foreign media reports said military police in the Netherlands were examining security video to check the account of an airport accomplice. Some foreign media reports quoted the military police as saying Abdulmutallab boarded the flight without going through passport control.
U.S. officials have said Abdulmutallab had a multi-entry visa to the United States. They have not specifically said whether he had a passport, but visas are typically, though not always, stamped into passports.
Travel path questionable
Edward Hasbrouck, author of the travel book series "The Practical Nomad" and an expert on international travel, said something about the story does not add up.
If Abdulmutallab did not have the proper travel documents, it is not clear how he got from Lagos, Nigeria, to the Netherlands, because someone from KLM, as well as government officials, would have checked his documents, Hasbrouck said.
In-transit passengers in Amsterdam are subjected to searches of their carry-on bags and pat-downs and sometimes, but not always document checks, he said. If Abdulmutallab's travel documents became an issue in Amsterdam, airline officials would have a strong incentive not to let him board because they would be charged with the costs of detainment and deportation, plus administrative fines, if he was refused entry to the United States, he said.
Still, refugees who lack proper documentation are sometimes permitted to enter the United States without a passport, Hasbrouck said.
"Maybe he had some evidence that he had a visa to the U.S., but not the actual visa or not the passport," he said.
Claim: Other man detained
Kurt Haskell said he does not believe the well-dressed man ever boarded the flight because he looked for him when the FBI gathered all the passengers for questioning at Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
"I think that it was all completely planned," Lori Haskell said.
"I totally don't think it was one guy."
She said that as the plane approached Detroit, she heard a popping sound she first thought was ice on the landing gear. Then a flight attendant walked by and said, almost to herself: "Does anyone hear that buzzing sound? I think I smell smoke."
Commotion then followed as smoke began to fill the cabin, flames shot up the wall of the plane, and passengers jumped on Abdulmutallab and, along with cabin crew, put out the fire, Haskell said.
Kurt Haskell said he saw a third man, who also appeared to be of Indian descent and looked about 30 years old, get taken away for FBI questioning and later led away in handcuffs after dogs detected something in his luggage after the flight landed.
He said one FBI agent later told passengers authorities had "those responsible" in custody.
The FBI in Detroit said only one man was arrested, and prosecutors in Detroit have refused to say whether there are other suspects in the case.
pegan@detnews.com (313) 222-2069 Staff Writers Nathan Hurst and Deb Price contributed.
From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20091229/METRO01/912290365/Flight-253-passengers-believe-others-involved-in-plot#ixzz1aRbb7ID7
Flight 253: US Complicity?
February 11, 2010 The Muslim Observer - By Adil James
http://muslimmedianetwork.com/mmn/?tag=saginaw-valley-state-university
Michigan Attorney Kurt Haskell discusses the events of Flight 253 and Underwear-Bomber Mutallab
February 10—Farmington—The attempted Underwear Bombing has already taken on the aspect of a familiar tableau, with all involved taking their usual hackneyed positions—the gallant police and intelligence authorities, the heroic passengers, all duped by the diabolically wicked Muslim anti-hero, who despicably and cleverly circumvented all the hurdles in his path in order to do the unthinkable.
But there is another dimension to this story, which shows the extent to which, nearly 10 years after 9/11, there is apparently no thought-through system in place to deal with cases of attempted airline hijackings and bombings, where shadowy people who appear to be affiliated with government agencies interfere with the functioning of airport security, where other shadowy people who appear to be terrorists are allowed to slip through the cracks, and where government officials from top to bottom appear either to lie about events or to be simply incredibly misinformed, or inept.
Attorney Kurt Haskell was on Flight 253. He is a vocal bankruptcy and divorce attorney who has a blog (haskellfamily.blogspot.com). According to his law firm’s website, he graduated from Saginaw Valley State University with a degree in Biology, Thomas M. Cooley Law School, and Wayne State University Law School where he earned an LLM in Taxation. He was a tax attorney for the IRS and opened the Haskell Law Firm in 2001 with his wife, Lori, who is also an attorney—she graduated from Davenport University and Wayne State University Law School.
Kurt and Lori Haskell were together on the eventful trip to and return from Africa; this trip to Africa led him through Amsterdam’s airport and onto flight 253, only a few rows away from a man who had come from Africa towards Detroit but with a very different purpose.
“I saw almost everything,” he explains, as he was sitting only 8 rows away from the bomber. “He was in row 19, we were in row 27.” “The whole thing took maybe a minute, it was really quick.”
As he recounts the event, it happened in the final minutes of the flight to Detroit, “only five or ten minutes from landing.” A female flight attendant walked past Mr. Haskell saying “it smells like smoke,” and a few moments later Haskell looked and saw a fire in what had been Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab’s row. People were yelling “Fire! Fire!” Someone was yelling “Terrorist!” A different flight attendant, who Haskell said was a black man named Dionne, put out the fire with a fire extinguisher. Haskell saw two passengers escorting Mutallab, who was then wearing a blanket where his pants had been, towards first class.
Mutallab has been described as in a “trance-like” state by one first class passenger who saw him after the event, but the word Haskell uses to describe Mutallab, after what must have been a terrifying and adrenaline-soaked event for all concerned, is “emotionless.”
But this was not the first time Haskell had seen Mutallab. He had seen him before getting on the plane in Amsterdam—and it was this previous brief encounter which strikes the jarring note of discord between the generally accepted story and the truth of the events of Flight 253.
“We had gone through the security checks,” he was sitting on the ground with his wife playing cards, very close to the ticketing agent who allows people to board the airplane, and he noticed what he described as an oddball pair approaching a ticket agent together. What was striking about the pair was that they were together. One was an “Indian-looking” man, dressed sharply, described in Haskell’s blog as the “sharp-dressed man.” He looked about 50 years old, looked wealthy, was wearing a suit. The other was Mutallab, looking maybe 15 years old, with “raggy jeans and a white T-shirt.”
“They went to the ticket agent together,” explains Haskell, who said he overheard the sharp-dressed man say to the ticketing agent “This man needs to board the plane, he has no passport.” “He’s from Sudan,” said the sharp-dressed man, “We do this all the time.”
At the time Haskell understood this to mean that the man (Mutallab) was a refugee. Mutallab said nothing during the exchange.
The ticketing agent said the sharp-dressed man would have to go to the manager, and she pointed down the hallway, then the “oddballs together” walked down the hall towards where the manager had pointed. “It meant so little to me at the time that I didn’t even mention it to my wife,” said Haskell.
It would only become significant in the light of the events that unfolded in the last few minutes of Flight 253. Fast forward to a blanketed Mutallab being escorted to the front of the airplane.
The plane had nearly finished the flight when Mutallab attempted to ignite the explosive in his underwear… and the ensuing pandemonium only lasted about a minute. The pilot requested emergency clearance to land, and it was only a short time before the passengers of the flight were all on land, however this is where Haskell witnessed “all [the] screwups” of security personnel in dealing with this attempted bombing.
First the plane spent about 20 to 30 minutes on the runway, explained Haskell. “We taxied to the gate, which was a big mistake—we didn’t know if there were other bombs on board, or accomplices.” “They could have blown up the entire terminal,” Haskell said.
That seems unlikely, since if the terrorists wanted to bomb an airport terminal it seems unnecessary to fly several thousand miles after getting through airport security in Amsterdam.
Haskell explained that the police got on the plane. Haskell said he had expected an emergency evacuation. “We don’t know how dangerous the situation is,” he said. The police said nobody could get off the plane. Haskell was apprehensive that there was another bomb on board.
“The police never came out of first class,” he said, “they didn’t check on the welfare of the other passengers.” “The police escorted Mutallab off the plane—he stood in the aisle for about 10 seconds, and I got a good look—he was wearing handcuffs.” That was the first time that Haskell knew Mutallab was a terrorist, he said.
“Then we were allowed to get off the plane, they let us take all carry-ons off. Big mistake. Disturbing the crime scene.” Mutallab had told the police, Haskell later learned (from news reports and from a client of his who works at the airport), that there was a bomb still on board the plane—but the police never searched the carry-on bags.
“We walked onto the runway, and were escorted to an evacuated baggage claim. Nobody else was around. We stood there for an hour. There were bomb sniffing dogs, 3 of them. One of them sniffed something in the bag of an Indian man, the ‘man in orange,’ who was wearing an orange shirt. The dog sat down, which indicates he found an explosive.”
“Immediately the man was taken away, but not handcuffed.” He was interviewed in a room, “we couldn’t see inside the room but we could see the door. Then he was taken out, handcuffed, and taken away.”
An officer came and moved the passengers to another area, saying it was “not safe here,” saying that everyone had seen what had happened earlier (with the man in orange) and could draw their own conclusions about why it wasn’t safe there.
The Flight 253 passengers were then moved, Haskell explained, to “a long narrow hallway, where we were held for four hours. We couldn’t talk on cell phones, or text anybody.” They were not allowed to eat or drink. “Mostly we were not allowed to use the bathroom,” he said.
Then, after several hours, a man came up to the passengers and said, “We believe we have those responsible in custody”—the passengers were then “free to go” after short interviews with the FBI. Haskell did his interview with the FBI and went home.
Haskell emphasizes their use of the plural “those involved” rather than the singular “the one involved.”
The passengers of Flight 253 do not have any formal organization, however Haskell explains that many of the passengers have emailed him through his website, and being in contact with the other passengers he has found one woman who publicly said that she saw Mutallab during his security exam (during which she said he appeared nervous and sweated profusely and ran his hands through his hair) and learned of another passenger whose name has not been made public—who is said to have video-taped the entire terrorist incident on the airplane.
Haskell explains that the video recording was made by a Dutch man who bought a camcorder on his way to visit New York City, and was operating it during the incident because he wanted to learn how to use it, or test it. According to Haskell’s sources this man’s video is now in the possession of government authorities, however the man has several photographs from the flight still in his possession, and Haskell believes there is a good chance those stills include at least one of the man in orange.
Haskell is astonished at the lack of interest in his story from mainstream media outlets. Haskell’s eyewitness account strongly indicates government complicity in transporting Mutallab, and also strongly indicates at least one other bomber was on Flight 253.
However, there is minimal interest in his story, and Haskell feels he has been maligned and his story undermined by official reports. According to what Haskell saw, either there was another bomber involved, or there was a case of mistaken attribution of terrorist intent against the man in orange—and if so that man must have a motive to expose what has happened to him. Haskell fully believes there was another terrorist whose involvement is being covered up by law enforcement authorities.
What does all this mean? Haskell discounts several popular theories, namely first that the government wanted the plane to be blown up to justify widespread body scanners and to justify making war on Yemen; second that the government wanted a failed bombing in order to justify the same two results above.
However, Haskell does believe, based on what he saw and based on cryptic statements from government officials that intelligence officials sometimes let known terrorists into the country in order to track them and see who they contact, that the US government did fully intend to let Mutallab into the country in order to watch him, but did not know that Mutallab never intended to actually arrive at Detroit airport and had stuffed explosives in his underwear in order to kill everyone onboard his airplane before ever touching down in Detroit.
Haskell’s feeling about the incident seems to be primarily one of astonishment at the actions of his own government and the American press to the incident.
If Haskell’s story is wrong, he argues, why is it that no Dutch security video has been released of the events at Amsterdam airport?
“Why aren’t they releasing the video, if my story is not true? Why is the media totally ignoring what I have to say?”
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A profound statement by Kurt Haskell
Around 13:08 of this 2nd video interview from above… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d3gdRrT1E&feature=youtube_gdata
“…(The Feds have) no credibility with people that are paying attention. A great deal of the population of the United States doesn’t pay any attention. So, you know, they still have some credibility with those that put their head in the sand. --Kurt Haskell
InfoWars Nightly News – Monday 10-10-2011
InfoWars Nightly News Special Report – Monday 10-10-2011 – Interview with Kurt Haskell
http://www.infowars.com/kurt-haskell-to-be-eyewitness-for-underwear-bomber-nightly-news-special-report/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hvSE1fP1go
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0JHIRLoP3Q
Bombshell New Plot
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/us-iran-tied-terror-plot-washington-dc-disrupted/story?id=14711933
This is a big one. Perhaps a justification for more sanctions or worse.
Ray McGovern Oct. 3/11,
http://original.antiwar.com/mcgovern/2011/10/03/israels-window-to-bomb-iran/
Hoping that Kurt's voice will start the avalanche of 911 truths!
John MITCHELL
Herblay FRANCE
bonjour,
here in France, the French have absolutely no idea of another version ot the underwear bomber than the official version. Kurt Haskell they have never heard of.
Hoping so much that Kurt's voice will start the avalanche of 911 truths to come !
Wishing much courage to Kurt as he will need it.
Yours
John
A pattern is becoming established here...
Add this case to an ever growing number of incidents in which the FBI (and others) lure impressionable teenage Muslim boys and young men to be entrapped. Each case is tailored carefully to make it appear that (1) there are real terror threats, and (2) the security services are doing a fine job, then the FBI's bogus version broadcast by the complicit mainstream media to a ready-primed, unwitting public.
There is a definite pattern here; the bombing of the WTC in 1993 was one. The bombing of PanAm 103 (Lockerbie) might easily have been another.. the case of al Megrahi case stinks. The Trevor Aaronson article below details numerous other cases. To what extent might the patsies of 9/11 been likewise entrapped....
It is significant that virtually all of these entrapment cases are directed against Muslims. Considering that *actual* acts of terrorism committed by Muslim extremists account for a minority of terrorist cases in the US, and a tiny minority in Europe likewise.
The motivation for this strategy might have something to do with racism, or Islamophobia, or ... and one can but wonder where that leads?
I hope Kurt Haskell is very careful regarding flying on small planes, (etc etc). I am not joking.
Caution needed
I hope Kurt Haskell is very careful regarding flying on small planes, (etc etc). I am not joking.
"Aware that his involvement in the case and his assertions of government complicity in the aborted attack could put his life in danger, Haskell made it clear on air that he was not planning on committing suicide."
Didn't the one Madame likewise say to A.J. that she doesn't intend to commit suicide before testifying in court... And what happened to her?
What could the truth movement do to actually protect Haskell while at the same time helping him get his message across?
When I spoke with Kurt...
When I spoke with Kurt over the phone, one of the objectives which he would like to see is that word of this story gets out. We can do that. We can continue to draw attention to this issue. We can spread the word to others, email media people, post comments on articles, etc.
Kurt Haskell is just a regular guy, like any good friend of ours would be. Great sense of humor. Very likable. Very "real". He and his wife have a lot of varied interests. Both Lori and Kurt demonstrate care for other people and it shows.
Tuesday 10/11/2011 - Some News Stories - Trial first day
WXYZ TV ABC - Channel 7 – Detroit VIDEO
First day of underwear bomber trial
Testimony has begun in the trial of the accused underwear bomber.
http://news.yahoo.com/video/detroitwxyz-20910802/first-day-of-underwear-bomber-trial-26898866.html
Legal analyst Tom Cranmer on “Underwear bomber” who talks about passenger witness(es) for the defense.
http://news.yahoo.com/video/detroitwxyz-20910802/legal-analyst-tom-cranmer-on-underwear-bomber-26896679.html
WJBK TV Fox – Channel 2 – Detroit VIDEO & story
Feds: Airline Attack Suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab Sought Martyrdom
By Ed White of the Associated Press
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/local/trial-starts-in-detroit-in-airline-attack-case-20111011-mr
DETROIT (AP) - A young Nigerian on a terrorist mission for al-Qaida prayed, washed and put on perfume moments before trying to detonate a bomb in his underwear to bring down an international jetliner on Christmas 2009, a prosecutor told jurors as the man's trial opened Tuesday.
Virtually everyone aboard Northwest Airlines Flight 253 had holiday plans, but Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab believed his calling was martyrdom, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Tukel said.
In the plane's bathroom, "he was engaging in rituals. He was preparing to die and enter heaven," Tukel said. "He purified himself. He washed. He brushed his teeth. He put on perfume. He was praying and perfuming himself to get ready to die."
After returning to his seat, Abdulmutallab pushed a syringe plunger into the chemical bomb in his underwear, an action that produced a "pop," the prosecutor told jurors.
The bomb didn't work as planned but Abdulmutallab was engulfed in flames, said Tukel, who displayed the flight's seating chart on a screen to show jurors where things happened on the plane.
The day's first and only witness, passenger Mike Zantow of Madison, Wis., said Abdulmutallab went to the bathroom for 10 to 15 minutes, then returned and put a blanket over himself. He heard the "pop" and said another passenger remarked, "Hey, dude, your pants are on fire."
Prosecutors delivered their opening statements after an unexplained 70-minute recess requested by Abdulmutallab and his attorney, Anthony Chambers, shortly after they entered the courtroom.
Chambers later informed the judge that he would waive his opening statement until later in the trial, a decision that came as somewhat of a surprise. Chambers had just last week persuaded Abdulmutallab, 24, not to give his own statement even though Abdulmutallab technically is acting as his own lawyer.
Earlier, Chambers had asked the judge to ban the word "bomb" or "explosive" from being used in the trial until final arguments, saying it's up to the jury to decide what caused the smoke and fire.
"I'm going to deny that motion. ... It makes no sense whatsoever," U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds said.
Edmunds also told Detroit-area attorney Kurt Haskell to leave the courtroom before opening statements began because he could be called as a defense witness. He was a passenger on Flight 253 and believes the U.S. government conspired with Abdulmutallab to outfit him with a fake bomb.
Abdulmutallab is relying on Chambers to handle the minute-by-minute work in the courtroom, meaning jurors are likely to see a more focused defense and not a wild justification for trying to bring down the Amsterdam-to-Detroit flight with 290 people aboard.
Abdulmutallab has written a few court filings in his own hand, including a request to be judged by Islamic law. He has at times appeared agitated in court, declaring that Osama bin Laden and a radical Muslim cleric recently killed by the U.S. are alive. He also has objected to trial testimony from experts who will talk about al-Qaida and martyrdom.
The government's evidence is stacked high. Abdulmutallab was badly burned in a plane full of witnesses. The government says he told FBI agents he was working for al Qaida and directed by Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical, American-born Muslim cleric recently killed by the U.S. in Yemen. There are also photos of his scorched shorts as well as video of Abdulmutallab explaining his suicide mission before departing for the U.S.
(From Dec 15, 2010 - Grand Jury: Underwear Bomber Had Co-Conspirators - http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/local/grand-jury%3A-underwear-bomber-had-co-conspirators )
...A new charge of Conspiracy to Commit an Act of Terrorism Transcending National Boundaries, for which the maximum sentence is life imprisonment.
The new charge is spelled out in Count One of the court document released today by the United States District Court of Michigan Southern Division. It says "From in or about the year 2009, continuing up to and including December 25,2009, defendant Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, and others whose names are known and unknown to the grand jury, conspired to engage in an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, involving conduct which was in violation of the laws of the United States....
Live Updates from Channel 4 clickondetroit.com
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/29450523/detail.html
Wow.
Such a bizarre turn of events. Looking very forward to seeing how this unfolds.
From "Live Updates"
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/29450523/detail.html
Local 4 is in court for the trial of airline attack suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.
Feds: Airline Attack Suspect Sought Martyrdom
Court adjourned until 9 a.m. 10/12/11
12:33 p.m. court resumes
Witness Mike Zanto begins testifying
Lives in Wisconsin
Married with 5 kids, 2 grandchildren
Retired in June of last year
Worked for company in Middle East
Maintenance supp of US airforce equipment
Dinecorp international
Served in US army for 26 years
Was a passenger of flight 253 Amsterdam of Detroit
Was living in the Middle East
Last minute trip to come home and see his sick mother on Christmas
Seat 20A window seat
Prior to take off switched seats so two friends could sit together
Ended up sitting in 20C
Defendant sat in seat 19A
Zanto identifies the defendant in the courtroom was on the plane
Exhibit 2.1 Flight seating chart
Row 20 is over the wing
Exhibit 6.1 admitted, picture of seating inside aircraft Exhibit 6.2 admitted, image inside aircraft, different angle
An hour before arriving in Detroit Umar left his seat to grab a bag of toiletries and then made his way to the restroom for 10-15 minutes
Another passenger spoke to Umar after hearing a loud pop “Hey dude your pants are on fire!”
Stewardess came over to see what happened and saw defendants pants on fire in seat 19A
Defendant remained seated and didn’t ask for help
Two passengers lifted him out of his seat and laid him on the ground
When defendant was laid on this back his pants were pulled down to his knees and Zantow notices something was "different" about his underwear.
12:15 p.m. court recess begins
11:45 a.m. Government Attorney Turkel continues speaking
Defendant's mission was to engage in Jihad and become a martyr
Received bomb in the underwear so he could wear it.
Defendant did not want to go straight from Yemen because that would be to obvious.
Defendant flew from Yemen to Ghana then to Nigeria where he caught flight from Nigeria to Amsterdam, and finally Amsterdam to Detroit
Defendant would not let maids at hotel in Amsterdam enter his room for fear they would discover his underwear bomb
Pouch sewn into the underwear to hold the main charge for the bomb
Defendant gave false answers to every question from profiler at airport in Amsterdam
There were three parts to the bomb.
Syringe was designed to cause the fire by injecting chemical mix into small amount of TATP chemical.
PETN didn’t explode, just burned, which is what cause the burns on defendant.
Jury will see one photo of burns to identify him
Tukel says there are fingerprints on sticky part of tape around the syringe that proves the defendant did not make the bomb but it was built by the Saudi Arabian man Umar met with.
Device contained 7 ounces of explosives.
Cannot show TATP demo in lab because it is too dangerous.
Legal definition of destructive device, an explosive bomb or all the parts needed to put together an explosive bomb.
When defendant was apprehended he was barefoot and shoes where left on airplane.
Code was found in defendant's shoes that is a password used to communicate.
11:08 a.m. : Government Attorney Turkel is speaking
Flight Northwest 253 was directed to make a steep decent in order to get the plane on the ground as quickly as possible.
290 people from 26 countries were on the flight
An emergency was declared at 11:45 a.m.
Traffic control recorded fire on flight 253
Plane enters U.S. airspace at 11:33 a.m.
Air traffic controllers only knew there was an emergency, they had to clear out air space so plane could land.
Pilots only had word of a fire
Plane was at 9,200 feet when the emergency took place. It took 1 minute for the plane to get down to 3,000 feet.
Pilots called the control tower to request fire trucks at landing.
Pilot eventually told controllers they found out that someone had "firecrackers" that went off on somebody's person. Pilot said they needed authorities upon landing.
Defendant was subdued to section 1G on the plane
Border protection officer Marvin Steigerwald asks defendant, "What were your intentions?"
Defendant responds, "To bring down the plane."
Steigerwald asks, "Who are you involved with?"
Defendant responds, "al-Qaida"
Jessica Worseley, a paramedic, had a conversation with the defendant.
Wroseley asked defendant, "Where is the powder from?"
Defendant responded he had to push a syringe into the powder in order to trigger an explosion.
FBI Agent Timothy Waters
Defendant went to Yemen to become involved with violent Jihad behavior against the United States.
Defendant sought out and found al-Qaida in support of Osama Bin Laden
Defendant had three tasks: Blow up a plane, make sure it was a U.S. airliner and make sure it was over U.S. soil.
Graphic - http://www.flight253.net/images/pic5.69466227.90357081.large.jpg
from http://www.flight253.net/Detailed-chain-of-events.htm
WTF.
'Underwear bomber' Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab pleads guilty
"Accused Terrorist Calls Underwear Bomb 'Blessed Weapon', Wanted to Avenge Muslim Deaths"
Not so bizarre really... SOP re. "justice" in action.
This is frustrating and disappointing in the utmost, but not unexpected...
Haskell's potential testimony must have been a real worry for the government... any of the jury members with an ounce of common sense would have realized that there were at least shenanigans afoot, and probably that Abdulmutallab was a naive kid who was deliberately set up by the FBI (and others). It was a real shame that Haskell's involvement was blasted all over the alternative media in advance of the trial, thus giving the government the heads up. They had to scramble quickly to avoid a black eye.
Speculation time: The kid was probably offered a nice juicy carrot by the government (short sentence? new ID?), in return for a guilty plea. Abdulmutallab jumped at it, on the advice of his lawyer, little aware that the enticement was nothing but hot air. In time when realizing he was duped, he'll change his mind and try to get another hearing. Before that happens, he will probably get "suicided" ie murdered by some thug on the government's payroll, and the whole thing will be conveniently forgotten.
In the meantime, Kurt Haskell remains a marked man. The penalties that one can pay for being patriotic and honest have no bounds, on account of law enforcement and other government agencies which have become pathologically corrupt.
for a moment I had hope for something REAL
http://www.infowars.com/underwear-bomber-guilty-plea-shields-government-complicity/#
Underwear Bomber Guilty Plea Shields Government Complicity
Reversal means identity of “well-dressed man” will remain unknown
Paul Joseph Watson
Infowars.com
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
After initially vowing to plead innocent and call Kurt Haskell, the man who saw him being aided onto Delta Flight 253 by a well dressed man, as a defense witness, alleged underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab has changed his mind and admitted all eight charges against him, thereby protecting accomplices involved in the plot.
“Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab, the Nigerian man accused of trying to detonate an explosive device in his underwear aboard a Christmas 2009 flight to Detroit, pleaded guilty to all counts in court Wednesday. AbdulMutallab had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges,” reports CNN.
In the space of a few days, Abdulmutallab completely reversed his decision to defend himself, and made no proper statement in court, instead simply reeling off a list of cliched extremist statements.
Abdulmutallab’s reversal now means that Detroit Attorney Kurt Haskell’s contention that the plot was, as in almost every other terror case made public, a product of government entrapment, and that the US intelligence establishment was involved in the aborted attack, will now remain buried, at least for the time being.
Haskell was an eyewitness to the fact that Abdulmutallab was helped through security, despite him being on a terror watchlist with no passport, by a well dressed Indian man, on Christmas Day 2009.
It later emerged that the State Department was ordered not to revoke Abdulmutallab’s visa by “federal counterterrorism officials” even though the accused bomber had known terrorist ties, in addition to the fact that his own father had warned U.S. intelligence officials of the threat posed by Abdulmutallab a month before the attempted attack.
Appearing on the Alex Jones Show earleir this week, Haskell said he thought Abdulmutallab was being “coached” on how to behave, which would explain his court outbursts that Haskell maintained were completely out of character.
Having decided to plead not guilty, act as his own defense, and call as a witness the one man who could identify the intelligence agents who used him as a dupe to carry out the attack, Abdulmutallab’s sudden change of heart clearly suggests that he has been threatened or offered a deal so as to protect the true culprits behind the plot.
Abdulmutallab’s change of mind also serves to protect the myth behind his handler, Anwar al-Awlaki, who as we have documented was clearly a double agent posing as an Al-Qaeda leader while doing the bidding of the US intelligence community.
Abdulmutallab’s admission of guilt will now be hastily exploited by the Obama administration to push its fearmongering agenda to turn America into a Stasi-style police state, with the Department of Homeland Security’s “See Something, Say Something” campaign, training citizens to report each other as terrorists, now in full swing across the country.
The guilty plea also ensures that the sanctity of the TSA’s grope down procedures and the multi-billion dollar naked body scanner industry, launched on the back of the foiled plot by government-affiliated insiders now reaping the financial whirlwind, will escape scrutiny.
Quick Reversal
The court case was also expected to shed light publicly on Abdulmutallab's relationship with Awlaki and Awlaki's role within al-Qaeda in the Arabian peninsula. However, Anwar al-Awlaki, the high profile al-Qaeda recruiter who dined at the Pentagon after 9/11, was killed in a CIA drone strike just days prior to the trial.
IN JUST DAYS, 2 things happen:
1. Awlaki is killed in a CIA drone attack.
2. Underwear Bomber pleads guilty.
TSA policies are bolstered.
AQ threat is bolstered.
ID of 'well dressed man" will remain unknown.
Kurt Haskell's testimony in court will remain unheard.
Awlaki's relationship with Abdulmutallab will remain unexplored.
Awlaki's relationship to intelligence not explored.
The fix is in
The powers that be hold the cards, printed the deck, built the casino, hired the crooked dealers, and own the town. There was never a chance that Mr. Haskell would be allowed on the stand.
Having said that, the tide keeps turning. More and more and more people finally waking up to the ham-fisted dealer palming cards and swiping chips.
As Haskell points out, the only people still fooled are those with their heads neck-deep in sand.
Legions now know, not suspect, but actually know unequivocally that criminal elements control government. Where this leads is an open question. But at least we KNOW.
Kurt Haskell Says He Will Sue Feds in Underwear Bomber Case
Kurt Haskell Says He Will Sue Feds in Underwear Bomber Case
http://www.infowars.com/kurt-haskell-says-he-will-sue-feds-in-underwear-bomber-case/
"Kurt Haskell said the lawsuit will allow him to subpoena witnesses and ask questions. He told Alex Jones he is primarily interested in getting “some more truth” out of the case now that the government has moved to shut down the release of further information, in particular the identity of the well dressed Indian man who escorted Abdulmutallab to the flight in Amsterdam on Christmas day, 2009."
45 sec - EuroNews
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APJXZNTiCiY&feature=related
Wed 10/12/2011 - InfoWars with Kurt Haskell
Underwear Bomber Guilty Plea Shields Gov. Complicity: Kurt Haskell Reports 1/2 & 2/2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRcN1i4xhyI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsKe1E_QcCI
The unexpected from Abdulmutallab
Abdulmutallab surprised everyone, including his own counsel. He speaks perfect English.
CHANNEL 4 - Detroit -
Terror Suspect: Attack Was Retaliation For Muslim Killings VIDEO
POSTED: Wednesday, October 12, 2011
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/29460188/detail.html
DETROIT -- A Nigerian man said Wednesday he tried to bring down an international flight over Detroit with a bomb in his underwear in retaliation for the killing of Muslims worldwide, taking a federal court by surprise as he pleaded guilty on the second day of his trial.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who had never denied the accusations against him, calmly answered questions from U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds before pleading guilty to all eight charges he faced, including conspiracy to commit terrorism and attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction.
He then told the court that the underwear bomb was a "blessed weapon to save the lives of innocent Muslims."
Courtroom Sketches: Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab
"The United States should be warned that if they continue to persist and promote the blasphemy of Mohammed and the prophets ... the United States should await a great calamity that will befall them through the hands of the mujahedeen soon," said Abdulmutallab, who faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison.
"If you laugh with us now we will laugh with you later on the day of judgment," he said.
Outside court, defense attorney Anthony Chambers said Abdulmutallab, who had chosen to represent himself and was being assisted by Chambers, pleaded guilty against the lawyer's wishes.
"We wanted to continue the trial but we respect his decision," Chambers said.
Abdulmutallab, who told the judge he is 25, said he carried a bomb in his underwear onto Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on Christmas 2009 with the intention of killing the nearly 300 people on board. The bomb didn't work, and passengers jumped on Abdulmutallab when they saw smoke and fire.
The evidence was stacked high. Abdulmutallab was badly burned on a plane full of witnesses. The government said he told FBI agents he was working for al-Qaida and directed by Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical, American-born Muslim cleric recently killed by the U.S. in Yemen. There were also photos of his scorched shorts as well as video of Abdulmutallab explaining his suicide mission before departing for the U.S.
In September 2010, Abdulmutallab suggested he wanted to plead guilty to some charges. But he didn't, and instead dropped his four-lawyer, publicly financed defense team and decided to represent himself. He said relying on others wasn't in his best interest.
His lawyers at the time said they had talked to prosecutors about a possible plea deal. Abdulmutallab had asked the judge what he needed to do to plead guilty to some charges but nothing happened and a trial was set.
A federal court trial was the proper venue, said U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade, and it "demonstrates that civilian courts are an appropriate tool for bringing terrorists to justice."
Passenger Lori Haskell, 34, of Newport, Mich., watched Abdulmutallab's plea by video in an overflow room Wednesday. She called his statement in court "chilling" but not surprising.
"I'm just really relieved that it's done with," Haskell said.
Abdulmutallab had written a few court filings in his own hand, including a request to be judged by Islamic law. He at times appeared agitated in court, declaring that Osama bin Laden and al-Awlaki are alive. He also objected to trial testimony from experts who would have discussed al-Qaida and martyrdom.
On Tuesday, a passenger on Flight 253 testified that Abdulmutallab took a long bathroom break in the plane, during which prosecutors say he was preparing for death.
"I thought he was freshening up for arrival in Detroit. ... We had less than an hour to go," said passenger Mike Zantow of Madison, Wis.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Tukel said the son of a wealthy Nigerian banker believed his calling that day was martyrdom.
"He was preparing to die and enter heaven," Tukel said. "He purified himself. He washed. He brushed his teeth. He put on perfume."
After returning to his seat, Abdulmutallab pushed a syringe plunger into the chemical bomb, an action that produced a loud "pop" sound, then flames and smoke, the prosecutor said.
"Then all hell broke loose. While the fireball was on him, the defendant sat there. He didn't move. He was expressionless. He was completely blank," Tukel said.
The government says Abdulmutallab willingly explained the plot twice, first to U.S. border officers who took him off the plane and then in more detail to FBI agents who interviewed him at a hospital for 50 minutes, following treatment for serious burns to his groin.
Abdulmutallab told authorities he trained in Yemen, home base for Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, and was influenced by al-Awlaki, who was killed in a Sept. 30 U.S. military air strike.
Following the strike, a U.S. official outlined new details of al-Awlaki's involvement against the U.S., including Abdulmutallab's mission. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, said al-Awlaki specifically directed Abdulmutallab to detonate an explosive device over U.S. airspace to maximize casualties.
Officials have said al-Awlaki was believed to be at a gathering of al-Qaida figures in Yemen's Shabwa mountains a day before the attack, after which bin Laden appeared in a video declaring Abdulmutallab a "hero." Abdulmutallab also has been lauded by al-Qaida's English-language Web magazine Inspire, whose editor was killed along with al-Awlaki.
Sentencing set for Jan. 12, 2012
Previous Stories:
October 12, 2011: Airline Attack Courtroom Updates 10/12/11
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/29461940/detail.html
9 A.M.
Court began at 9 a.m. on time and Umar came in wearing a long gold dress like outfit. Chambers brought something up to the judge in a sidebar immediately after court started and Edmunds recessed until 9:45 a.m. to "adderess the matter."
9:52 A.M.
Court is back in session…Umar carrying a manila envelope
9:57 A.M.
Abdulmatallab to plead guilty and starts speaking at stand with judge.
Understands his right to remain silent
Wishes to waive that right
Says he’s 25 years old
“I have an engineering degree”
Fluent in English
Edmunds: “are you under the influence of any drugs or alcohol?”
Umar: “no”
Edmunds agrees he is competent to change his plea
Umar understands his charges are felonies
Edmunds is going over punishments
Pleeds Guilty to following counts Count 1 - Guilty Count 2 - Guilty Count 3 – Guilty Count 4 – Guilty Count 5 – Guilty Count 6 – Guilty Count 7 – Guilty Count 8 – Guilty
Umar is standing very calm while pleading guilty
No one forced him to plead guilty, doing so voluntarily
What he did in his own words:
“In the name of Allah If I were to say I the father did not do it but my son did it… Or as I said in late 2009 in fulfillment of religious obligation …an eye for an eye a tooth for a tooth… had agreement with at least one person to attack the US… in retaliation for killing of innocent Muslims… traveled to Yemen then to US…agreement with one person to carry explosive on airplane to US…inspired to participate in jihad by lectures….Allah knows best…according to US law which is unjust, my actions make me guilty of a crime…”
Goes through counts that made him guilty
“I intentionally carried an explosive device on to flight 253…The US used weapons of mass destruction against innocent muslims…I intended to wreck a civil aircraft…The US should be warned if they continue should be warned if they continue to kill innocent Muslims...God will strike them directly by his will on the day of judgement”
Tukel speaks: “You pushed the plunger on the explosive device knowing you were over the US?”
Umar: “Correct”
Tukel: “You carried the device on the plane when in the Netherlands?”
Umar: “Yes that is correct”
Tukel: “What you refer to as an explosive device…It is an explosive bomb correct?”
Umar: “If that’s what you say”
Wed Oct 12 - News 13 - Detroit area
News 13 is owned by Bright House Network cable.
(AP Photo/The Detroit News, David Coates) Kurt Haskell, a passenger on the Amsterdam-to-Detroit flight who was to be the only defense witness, talks outside federal court in Detroit on Wednesday Oct. 12, 2011. Accused "underwear bomber" Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab surprised the...
Nigerian man pleads guilty in underwear bomb plot
http://www.cfnews13.com/article/news/ap/october/328432/Nigerian-man-pleads-guilty-in-underwear-bomb-plot
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
DETROIT -- A Nigerian man pleaded guilty Wednesday to trying to bring down a jetliner with a bomb in his underwear, defiantly telling a federal judge that he acted in retaliation for the killing of Muslims worldwide and referring to the failed explosive as a "blessed weapon."
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who acknowledged working for al-Qaida and never denied the allegations, entered the plea against his attorney's advice on the second day of his trial. He stands to get a mandatory life sentence for the 2009 attack that aimed to kill nearly 300 people on Christmas Day in the skies above Detroit.
Abdulmutallab calmly answered the judge's questions and read a political statement warning that if the United States continues "to persist and promote the blasphemy of Muhammad and the prophets," it risks "a great calamity ... through the hands of the mujahedeen soon."
"If you laugh at us now, we will laugh at you later on the day of judgment," he said.
Abdulmutallab suggested more than a year ago that he wanted to plead guilty but never did. He dropped his four-person, publicly financed defense team in favor of representing himself with help from a prominent local lawyer appointed by the court, Anthony Chambers.
In an interview, Chambers said Abdulmutallab privately renewed his interest in a guilty plea Tuesday before the start of the trial. But it did not happen immediately because the defendant was not prepared to go through the lengthy required question-and-answer session with the judge.
When the two met again Wednesday morning, Abdulmutallab was ready, Chambers said.
Prosecutors were aware of a possible plea, but there were no negotiations. Abdulmutallab had "no interest" in speaking to prosecutors, Chambers said, and was unlikely to get any benefit at this stage of the case.
"It was too late. We were ready to go," U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade said.
Chambers wanted to go to trial to raise doubts about just how powerful the explosive was. And if Abdulmutallab were convicted, there was also a possible appeal involving the lack of a Miranda warning before a crucial FBI interview.
"I know he prayed about it and came to what he believed was the right decision," Chambers said. "I don't think there was anything done (at trial) that made him say, `This is a done deal. I have to take a plea.' It was a personal decision."
Passenger Lori Haskell of Newport, Mich., watched the plea by video from a room near the court. She called Abdulmutallab's statement "chilling" but not surprising.
"I'm just really relieved that it's done with," she said.
The Amsterdam-to-Detroit flight was just moments from landing when Abdulmutallab tried to detonate the bomb in his pants. It failed to go off, but his clothes caught fire, and passengers jumped on him when they saw smoke and flame.
The evidence was stacked high.
The government said Abdulmutallab willingly explained the plot twice, first to U.S. border officers who took him off the plane and then in more detail to FBI agents who interviewed him at a hospital after he was treated for burns to his groin.
There were also photos of his scorched shorts, video of Abdulmutallab explaining his suicide mission before departing for the U.S. and scores of passengers who could have been called as eyewitnesses.
Attorney General Eric Holder said the plea "removes any doubt that our courts are one of the most effective tools we have to fight terrorism," referring to a long-running debate over whether suspects such as Abdulmutallab should be tried in civilian or military courtrooms.
"We will let results, not rhetoric, guide our actions," Holder said.
Dimitrios Bessis of Harrison County, Ga., sat two rows behind Abdulmutallab on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 and used his hat to beat out the flames. He said his trip to Detroit to serve as a potential witness was his first plane ride since the attempted attack.
"He put terror in children's eyes, in mother's hearts," Bessis said. "I've seen men freeze from shock on the plane. It was a horrible experience. I have nightmares from it."
A woman who sat six rows in front of Abdulmutallab on the plane, said the guilty plea provided her with "relief."
"It was disheartening and sickening, however, to listen to Abdulmutallab explain why he feels his actions were justified," Hebba Aref, a Detroit-area native, wrote in an email to The Associated Press.
"As a Muslim myself, I know that he has a completely erroneous and distorted interpretation of the Quran."
Abdulmutallab, the well-educated son of a wealthy banker, told investigators he trained in Yemen, which is home base for Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. He said he targeted a U.S.-bound flight at the urging of Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical, American-born Muslim cleric recently killed by the U.S. military in Yemen.
In court, he sometimes appeared agitated, declaring that Osama bin Laden and al-Awlaki were still alive. He also objected to trial testimony from experts who would have discussed al-Qaida and martyrdom.
Abdulmutallab, who told the judge he is 25, pleaded guilty to all eight charges, including conspiracy to commit terrorism and attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction. He is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 12.
When Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Tukel asked if he was carrying a bomb, Abdulmutallab replied: "If you say so." He said he was "guilty of U.S. law but not in the Quran."
The case had lasting implications for security screening at American airports.
Abdulmutallab's ability to defeat security in Amsterdam contributed to the deployment of full-body scanners at U.S. airports. The Transportation Security Administration was using the scanners in some American cities at the time, but the attack accelerated their placement.
There are now nearly 500 devices nationwide.
Passenger Alain Ghonda of Silver Spring, Md., said he came to court Wednesday "to see the man who tried to kill me." He took some comfort in knowing Abdulmutallab would be locked up for many years.
"At least he will be going away for hopefully forever and not be able to harm other people," he said.
___
Associated Press writers David Runk and Jeff Karoub in Detroit and Matt Apuzzo in Washington contributed to this report.