US citizen David Headley admits role in Mumbai attacks

[Robb]

Source: BBC

A US citizen has pleaded guilty to scouting targets for the 2008 attacks on the Indian city of Mumbai.

David Headley, at his trial in Chicago, also admitted plotting to attack a Danish newspaper that published a cartoon many Muslims deemed offensive.

Headley, 49, had denied the charges but changed his plea to avoid the death penalty or extradition to India, Pakistan or Denmark.

The attacks on Mumbai in November 2008 left more than 170 people dead.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8575542.stm

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Supposedly working with Lashkar-e-Taiba since 2002.

[Ikonoklast]

1. Murderer of innocents.

He deserves whatever sentence he gets.

[nyy1998]

3. +1

[cosmicone]

2. How can a plea deal allow him to

evade extradition to India?

India and US have an extradition treaty and it is not a US prosecutor's call to decide if this murderer is shipped to India or not.

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. A sentence in one country takes precedence over extradition to another

Since 6 Americans were killed in the attack, the US will claim a jurisdiction. If that means avoiding the possible death penalty in India, but may mean a life sentence in the US, I can see why he'd take that. If he doesn't get a life sentence, it might be interesting when he gets out of prison - would he then be extradited to India to face a new trial?

[Romulox]

6. Plea deals are supposed to have something in it for BOTH parties

(they are quasi contractual in nature, i.e.)

It's difficult to see what the US feels its interest is in denying India the opportunity to try him.

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. It's normal to assert your own jurisdiction first

if the charges are roughly equivalent. For instance:

Abu Hamza, the former imam of the Finsbury Park Mosque in North London, is wanted in the United States and the extradition proceedings were automatically adjourned yesterday after the charges were put to him. They will remain in abeyance until he is acquitted or convicted of the British charges and will then resume

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article496621.ece

There was a brief discussion as to whether there should have been a
place of commission/natural forum provision in the UK legislation. In practice, the
2003 Act ensures that a domestic prosecution will always take precedence over an
extradition request. This applies even where the prosecution relates to a different
offence or offences.

http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/files/3249_ilp190505.pdf

When it's an American accused of taking part in the murder of Americans (among others), it would have been amazing not to try him in the US when arrested there. It's a rare country that says "no, we think our justice system is flawed, and yours is better - you take the lead on this".

The plea deal isn't really relevant. Headley had already been charged in the US some time ago. He changed his plea to guilty yesterday.

[Romulox]

9. This is not a "normal" case--the man is accused of being complicit in the murder 160 + Indians

"The plea deal isn't really relevant. Headley had already been charged in the US some time ago. He changed his plea to guilty yesterday."

You have a funny definition of "relevance", then. In addition, it seems that the plea deal allows the possibility of less than a life sentence? I begin to suspect there is more at play here than is being revealed.

Wonder if this fellow isn't a rogue "intelligence asset"?

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. Because the charges were made in January, before he change his plea

See eg http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/mumbai-terror-suspect-headley-pleads-not-guilty_100310735.html

That's why the change in plea isn't relevant to him being charged in the US - because it happened long after the charges.

Yeah, he's accused of being complicit in the killings in the US charges too. However, note that they say he's cooperating. That's what the US has got out of this, rather than just the chance to execute him:

Headley, who had faced possible execution for causing the deaths of U.S. nationals, pleaded not guilty before a federal magistrate in Chicago on Jan. 27. By that time, prosecutors and his lawyer, John Theis, had said he was cooperating with the U.S. government.

“We think it’s important to note that from the day of his arrest, he began cooperating with the government and provided substantial assistance in the investigation of this case and provided significant, critical information regarding intelligence on other matters,” Robert Seeder, an attorney for Headley, said after today’s hearing.

Headley cooperated with the government for 13 days, without assistance of lawyers, after he was arrested even though he had been advised that he had a right to remain silent, Seeder said. Headley’s disclosures helped the U.S. and other countries, Seeder said.

“We believe it is fair to say that his cooperation has potentially saved the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of people,” Seeder said. “And his cooperation is going to continue throughout the remainder of this case.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=an_3T3w3RN4A

This is more productive than waterboarding, or executing him and having someone paint him as a martyr.

[newtothegame]

4. "There is no terrorist threat."

Thank you Michael Moore.

[bahrbearian]

8. I don't beleive anything he says...

until Cheney has a chance to Water Board him.

[unabelladonna]

11. a trashy piece of excrement

i wouldn't be surprised if he was trolling for recruits on white supremacist websites. something about this case is weird.