New charges detail Headley's role in Denmark terror plot too

Chicago, Dec 8 : New federal charges filed against suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba operative David Coleman Headley accusing him of conspiracy in the Mumbai attacks also relate his involvement in a Denmark terror plot.

Headley, an American citizen of Pakistani origin, already accused of plotting to murder a Danish newspaper cartoonist, was Monday charged with six counts of conspiracy to bomb public places in India and Denmark and to provide material support to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistani-based terrorist group.

According to prosecutors, Headley allegedly conspired between October 2008 and Oct 3, 2009, with Ilyas Kashmiri, as well as a person identified as Individual A, members of Lashkar and others to plan and carry out terrorist attacks, including murder and maiming, against the facilities of the Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, a Danish newspaper, and two of its employees, Editor A and Cartoonist A.

In 2005, the newspaper published cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed, to which many Muslims took great offence.

Mirroring the initial charges filed against Headley in October, Monday's charges allege that he met with co-conspirators while he was in Pakistan in late 2008 and discussed planning for the attack, including extensive surveillance work that he would perform.

In late December and early January 2008, after advising Individual A of the planned attack and his intended travel to Denmark to perform surveillance of the newspaper's facilities, Headley obtained Individual A's approval and assistance to identify himself as a representative of First World and gain access to the newspaper by falsely expressing interest in advertising the business in the newspaper.

At the same time, while in Chicago, Headley exchanged emails with co-conspirators to continue planning for the attack and coordinate his travel to Denmark to conduct surveillance. Before departing Chicago, Headley obtained business cards

that identified him as a representative of First World, according to the charges.

Headley allegedly travelled in January 2009 from Chicago to Copenhagen to conduct surveillance of the Jyllands Posten newspaper offices in Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark, and videotaped the surrounding areas.

From January through May 2009, Headley met with co-conspirators, including Kashmiri, on multiple occasions in Pakistan to review his surveillance and discuss plans for the attack, the charges allege, adding that Headley travelled in August 2009 from Chicago to Copenhagen to conduct additional surveillance and made approximately 13 videos.

On Oct 3, 2009, Headley was arrested at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, intending ultimately to travel to Pakistan to meet with, and deliver the 13 surveillance videos to co-conspirators, including Kashmiri.

The charges identify Kashmiri as an influential leader of Harakat-ul Jihad Islami (HUJI), an organization that trained terrorists and executed attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.

Kashmiri based his operations from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of western Pakistan, an area which served as a haven for terrorist organizations, including Al Qaeda and the Taliban.

Headley allegedly was introduced to Kashmiri as early as February 2009, and understood that Kashmiri was in regular communication with the senior leadership of Al Qaeda.

The two-count complaint unsealed against Abdur Rehman, which was filed Oct 20 charges him with conspiracy to murder and maim persons in a foreign country, and providing material support to that foreign terrorism conspiracy.

Abdur Rehman allegedly participated in the planning of a terrorist attack in Denmark, coordinated surveillance of the intended targets, and facilitated communications regarding the surveillance and planning with a member of Lashkar and Kashmiri.

Abdur Rehman, who was not named previously but whose alleged participation was described in the initial charges against Headley and Rana, allegedly played the central role in communicating with Headley and facilitating contacts with other co-conspirators in Pakistan, including members of Lashkar.