TORONTO (AP) – Two men could spend the rest of their lives in prison after being found guilty of several terror-related charges for plotting to attack a passenger train traveling from New York to Toronto.
Prosecutors had argued during the trial that the men were motivated by Islamic extremism and spent months plotting to kill as many people as they could. Investigators said the men received guidance from members of al-Qaida, in what they called the first known attack planned by the terrorist network in Canada.
Raed Jaser, a longtime resident of Canada of Palestinian descent, and Tunisian-born Chiheb Esseghaier were arrested in 2013. Jaser, 37, and Esseghaier, 32, had pleaded not guilty.
On Friday, the 10th day of deliberations, the jury found both men guilty of conspiring to commit murder in association with a terrorist group. The men, who will be sentenced April 10, could face maximum punishment of up to life in prison.
Jaser’s lawyer had argued that his client was only feigning interest in the alleged terror plot as part of an elaborate scheme to extract money from his co-defendant and an undercover FBI agent who befriended the men.