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LONDON - Suspects accused of failed "murderous suicide bombings" on London's Underground on July 21, 2005, had been secretly photographed by police more than a year before on what may have been a camping trip for Islamic extremists in the Lake District.
A court heard yesterday that police surveillance officers had watched the group, which included a number of other people, lined up in Islamic prayer and being addressed by someone else, during the trip in Cumbria in 2004.
Nigel Sweeney, QC, prosecuting at Woolwich Crown Court, opened the case for the Crown at the beginning of what is expected to be a four-month trial of six men, who are said to have organised "an extremist Muslim plot" to target London's transport system just 14 days after the July 7 bombings.
Sweeney said the plot had been hatched as early as March 2005 and was not "some hastily arranged copycat", despite the fact that one of the bombs had been deployed on a bus some time after the others. The reason why the bombs, made from a mixture of chemicals and chapatti flour had not exploded, said Sweeney, was because of "good fortune" and the plotters having failed to make the correct concentration of explosive material.
The six men charged with conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to cause explosions likely to endanger life are Muktar Said Ibrahim, 28, Ramzi Mohammed, 25, Yassin Hassan Omar, 26, Hussain Osman, 28, Manfo Kwaku Asiedu, 33, and Adel Yahya, 24. All deny the charges.
The role of Ibrahim, Asiedu, Osman, Omar and Mohammed was "that of would-be suicide bombers" while Yahya was involved in "essential preparation done in furtherance of the conspiracy" although he left the country nearly six weeks before July 21.
The bombs were made at Omar's flat at Curtis House in New Southgate, which became a "bomb factory", with materials bought from local shops. They were carried in adapted rucksacks and packed around with tacks, screws and washers as "shrapnel" to make them more deadly.
All the six defendants originally came from Africa, lived in various parts of London and were known to each other "in various combinations" by the northern summer of 2005. There was evidence from witnesses and documentation that Ibrahim, Omar, Osman and Yahya "all held extremist views" and that Ibrahim, Osman and Yahya had all spoken about carrying out jihad in Iraq, Afghanistan and Chechnya. At both Omar and Osman's homes, police had found "a mass of religious, extremist, Muslim material, including home-made films featuring images of beheadings and other terrorist atrocities, including 9/11". Some of it was "too horrific" to be shown to the jury.
All except Asiedu had been seen and photographed by police watching a camping expedition in the Lake District from April 30 to May 3. Osman had admitted to police that he had also taken part in camping trips to Scotland and Kent.
There was also evidence that Ibrahim had been on a training camp in Sudan in 2003 and had gone to Pakistan in December 2004 to take part in jihad or to train for it.
Sweeney said that both Ibrahim and Omar had visited the Finsbury Park mosque and heard preacher Abu Hamza. They also had tapes of his preachings. In February 2005, Omar had heard his own iman at Finchley mosque deliver a sermon saying that suicide bombing was against Islamic law. Omar told him he did not agree.
The night before the bombings, the men, apart from Yahya, met at Mohammed's flat in Delgarno Gardens. The following morning, Ibrahim, Omar and Mohammed drove to Stockwell Tube station in South London.
At Stockwell, wearing a top with the words New York emblazoned across it, which was "no doubt connected with the events of 9/11", Mohammed took a Northern Line train heading towards the City of London. Sweeney said: "In the tunnel, [between Stockwell and Oval] Mohammed turned so that his rucksack was facing a mother with a pushchair and then detonated, causing panic, fear and confusion, even though the main charge had failed to go off."
Ibrahim took a Northern Line train to the City a few minutes after Mohammed. At Bank station he caught a No 26 bus and sat on the top deck. As the bus reached the junction of Shoreditch High Street and Hackney Road, shortly after 1pm local time, he detonated his bomb. Omar allegedly boarded a Victoria Line Tube travelling north from Stockwell.
As the train approached Warren Street, he detonated his bomb "with the same effect" - not exploding properly - but causing panic and confusion.
Osman allegedly boarded a Hammersmith and City line train at Westbourne Park which was travelling from Paddington to Hammersmith and detonated the bomb between Latimer Road and Shepherd's Bush. A gym membership card with his photograph on was found inside the rucksack containing the bomb. Asiedu "lost his nerve at the last moment" and dumped his bomb in a wooded area in Little Wormwood Scrubs where it was found two days later.
In the aftermath, all fled. Sweeney said there was evidence that Ibrahim, Asiedu and Omar were all involved in an attempt the following day to clear out the bomb factory at Curtis House.
Omar was captured on CCTV at Golders Green coach station in north London and at Birmingham coach station disguised in a burqa. He was eventually arrested at a house in Birmingham by armed police the following Wednesday. "He was found fully clothed, stood in a bath, wearing a rucksack on his back."
Two of the other defendants, Ibrahim and Mohammed, were arrested at a flat in Delgarno Gardens, west London, two days later. Osman caught a train from Waterloo to Paris, using the passport of one of his brothers. He then travelled to Rome and he was arrested on July 29.
The men, said Sweeney, had been connected to their bombs by various combinations of CCTV, DNA and fingerprint evidence. It was not precisely clear why the bombs had failed to explode, said Sweeney, but was probably related to either the hot weather, the degradation of the material or the problems with manufacture. "The failure of these bombs to explode owed nothing to the intentions of the defendants - rather it was simply the good fortune of the travelling public that they were spared."
THE ALLEGATIONS
Four members of a group tried to detonate bombs on three London Underground trains and a bus but the devices failed to go off. A fifth man abandoned his bomb after "losing his nerve".
THE CHARGES
That, between January 1 and July 30, 2005, the men conspired together "and with other persons unknown to murder other persons". That they "maliciously conspired together" to cause "explosions of a nature likely to endanger life or cause serious injury to property"
THE JULY 21 ACCUSED
Muktar Said Ibrahim, 28
Originally from Ethiopia, moved to Britain in 1990s. Spent most of his time at Curtis House, New Southgate, north London. Also used the name Muktar Mohammed Said on UK passport and bank accounts. Detonated bomb on number 26 bus in Hackney. Was trained for jihad in the Sudan in 2003 and went to Pakistan the next year "to take part in jihad or to train for it". Attended the Finsbury Park mosque and would discuss jihad with Omar.
Manfo Kwaku Asiedu, 33
Of no fixed address. Asiedu moved to Britain in 2003 on a Ghanaian passport with a false name and later assumed the name of Asiedu. His real name is thought to be Bukhari. With Ibrahim, Omar, and Yahya he attended a camping trip in 2004 to "get fit for jihad", the court heard. Lost his nerve and dumped bomb on Little Wormwood Scrubs. Went to police pretending not to know about plot.
Hussain Osman, 28
Lived near Stockwell station with wife and children, north London. Detonated bomb on Hammersmith and City Line near Shepherd's Bush. He and Omar were alleged to have at their homes a collection of extremist Islamic material, including videos showing suicide bombings and beheadings. He went to a camping trip on a farm in Cumbria in May 2004, where police kept him under surveillance. After the plot failed he fled to Paris and Rome, where he was arrested.
Yassin Hassan Omar, 26
From Curtis House. Detonated bomb on Victoria Line Tube, near Warren Street station. Somalian-born, came to Britain in the early 1990s. In foster care until he was 18. Is said to have attended the Finsbury Park mosque. He appeared to admire the Taleban for creating a "true Islamic state". His flat became the "bomb factory". Fled London disguised as a woman in a burqa. Arrested in Birmingham, fully clothed, standing in a bath, wearing a rucksack.
Ramzi Mohammed, 25
From North Kensington, west London; Came from Somalia in the late 1990s; had two young sons who lived with mother in south London. Detonated bomb on Northern Line at Oval. All the suspects, except Yahya, met at his flat in Delgarno Gardens the night before the intended attack. Said to have left suicide note found in pieces at his home and possibly suicide video.
Adel Yahya, 24
From High Road, Tottenham, north London. Born in Ethiopia and lived in Yemen. Knew Omar since school. Was studying computers at London Metropolitan University. Left London in June 2005, six weeks before July 21, but alleged to have been part of the plot preparations. He was said to be involved in buying the bombs' components.
- INDEPENDENT
