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Pakistani accused of terrorist ties deported from US

DENVER: A man accused of attending a terrorist training camp was deported on Thursday to Pakistan.

Sajjad Nasser, 29, was deported under a section of the Patriot Act that expands the legal definitions of terrorist organizations and acts, said Corina Almeida, chief counsel for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“I think this case sends a very loud message to the terrorists and those that seek to do us harm,” she said. Nasser’s attorney, David Lane, called the allegation that his client helped terrorists “a big, fat lie”. “He is a sacrificial lamb,” his lawyer said. “It’s ludicrous. It’s racist.”

Nasser was arrested in March 2003 on charges of conspiring to harbour an illegal resident. In a deal with prosecutors, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of possessing a fake ID and was sentenced to the 17 months already served. Nasser’s brother used Nasser’s immigration identification card to make a fake ID so the brother could get a job at a grocery store, Lane said.

Nasser was never charged with a terrorism crime; immigration authorities accused him of attending a training camp run by Jaish-e-Mohammed, considered by the United States to be a terrorist group.

An immigration judge ruled in June that Nasser’s participation provided material support for a terrorist organisation, making him subject to deportation. Lane said Nasser thought the camp’s intent was to teach people to defend Pakistan against invasion by India, and left after three days when he realised its true intentions.

Under his plea deal, Nasser agreed not to appeal and may never return to the United States. Nasser’s wife, Farida Mommandi, and 9-month-old son, both US citizens, live in Denver. She did not immediately return a telephone message, but Lane said she had no immediate plans to travel to Pakistan with their son. Nasser arrived in Pakistan on Thursday on a charter flight, ICE spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. ap

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