Man appears in UK court accused of killing soldier
Source: Agencies |
May 31, 2013, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
MICHAEL Adebowale, 22, appeared in a London court yesterday charged with the killing of a British soldier on a busy London street last week, which the prosecutor said would be tried as a terrorist act.
Adebowale was charged late on Wednesday with the murder of Lee Rigby, a 25-year-old serving soldier, in Woolwich in south-east London on May 22. He also faces a charge of possessing a firearm, a 9.4mm revolver, with intent to cause others to believe that violence would be used.
Prosecutor Bethan David told the court the alleged offense fell under the scope of terrorism legislation.
Looking dazed and limping slightly, Adebowale appeared in handcuffs in the glass-fronted dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court wearing white trousers and a light grey sweatshirt.
Asked to confirm his name and address in Greenwich in south-east London, he said only "yes." The two charges were then read out to him during the hearing, which lasted less than five minutes.
He did not enter a plea, as is normal at this stage under British law.
He is one of two men suspected of attacking Rigby. The other, 28-year-old Michael Adebolajo, remains hospitalized and has not been charged. He is likely to be charged once he has recovered sufficiently to be released from hospital.
The daylight attack on Rigby by the two men wielding knives and meat cleavers has aggravated tensions in Britain, especially since Adebolajo - carrying bloody weapons - invited onlookers to film him after the killing as he ranted about the British government's presence in Muslim lands. There has been a surge in anti-Muslim protests and attacks on mosques since the killing, and far-right groups have mobilized.
Judge Howard Riddle sent Adebowale's case to London's Central Criminal Court, known as the Old Bailey, for trial. Adebowale will appear there for a bail hearing next Monday. A further pre-trial hearing is scheduled for June 28.
Rigby, a veteran of the Afghan war, died at the scene of the attack. A post-mortem gave the cause of death as "multiple incised wounds."
Prime Minister David Cameron called the attack "a betrayal of Islam and of the Muslim communities who give so much to our country," and vowed that Britain would never give in to terrorism in any of its forms.
Kenyan police have said they believed Adebolajo, a British citizen, had earlier associated with a radical Kenyan Muslim cleric who tried to help him join an al-Qaida-linked rebel group in neighboring Somalia.
Adebolajo was arrested with five other young men in November 2010 near the Kenya-Somalia border and eventually returned to Britain.
Adebowale was charged late on Wednesday with the murder of Lee Rigby, a 25-year-old serving soldier, in Woolwich in south-east London on May 22. He also faces a charge of possessing a firearm, a 9.4mm revolver, with intent to cause others to believe that violence would be used.
Prosecutor Bethan David told the court the alleged offense fell under the scope of terrorism legislation.
Looking dazed and limping slightly, Adebowale appeared in handcuffs in the glass-fronted dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court wearing white trousers and a light grey sweatshirt.
Asked to confirm his name and address in Greenwich in south-east London, he said only "yes." The two charges were then read out to him during the hearing, which lasted less than five minutes.
He did not enter a plea, as is normal at this stage under British law.
He is one of two men suspected of attacking Rigby. The other, 28-year-old Michael Adebolajo, remains hospitalized and has not been charged. He is likely to be charged once he has recovered sufficiently to be released from hospital.
The daylight attack on Rigby by the two men wielding knives and meat cleavers has aggravated tensions in Britain, especially since Adebolajo - carrying bloody weapons - invited onlookers to film him after the killing as he ranted about the British government's presence in Muslim lands. There has been a surge in anti-Muslim protests and attacks on mosques since the killing, and far-right groups have mobilized.
Judge Howard Riddle sent Adebowale's case to London's Central Criminal Court, known as the Old Bailey, for trial. Adebowale will appear there for a bail hearing next Monday. A further pre-trial hearing is scheduled for June 28.
Rigby, a veteran of the Afghan war, died at the scene of the attack. A post-mortem gave the cause of death as "multiple incised wounds."
Prime Minister David Cameron called the attack "a betrayal of Islam and of the Muslim communities who give so much to our country," and vowed that Britain would never give in to terrorism in any of its forms.
Kenyan police have said they believed Adebolajo, a British citizen, had earlier associated with a radical Kenyan Muslim cleric who tried to help him join an al-Qaida-linked rebel group in neighboring Somalia.
Adebolajo was arrested with five other young men in November 2010 near the Kenya-Somalia border and eventually returned to Britain.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
