The man convicted of plotting to bomb a Danish newspaper has been sentenced to 14 years behind bars in the United States. Tahawwur Rana, 52, a Canadian citizen born in Pakistan, was convicted on US federal charges in June of 2011 for his involvement in a plan to bomb the offices of Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, the Danish news agency that had published cartoons depicting the Muslim prophet Mohammed in 2005.
Prosecutors said during the trial that Rana had allowed his immigration agency to function as a cover for the group behind the attack mission. The group – Lashkar-e-Taiba – was also allegedly involved with the Mumbai attacks of 2008 in which more than 160 people were killed. Rana was, however, cleared of his involvement with that attack during the trial.
On Friday (18 January), US District Judge Harry D Leinenweber sentenced Rana to 14 years in a federal correctional facility, despite prosecutors’ requests for him to serve up to three decades behind bars.
Rana’s defense attorney told the media, “We think the judge made the right ruling. It had always been our belief that it would be very difficult to get a fair trial if he had to face charges for two separate plots at once,” the Huffington Post reports.