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| Europe |
| Germany nabs more suspected Bad Guys... |
| 2002-10-06 |
| A 41-year-old Algerian man believed to be the leader of a group of Islamic militants in Germany is being held by authorities after a series of weekend raids. Four other suspects — one of whom worked at the Stuttgart airport, but was removed from the baggage checking area when suspicions about him arose — were questioned and released overnight and early Sunday for lack of evidence. On Saturday, prosecutors ordered raids on 11 properties in and around the eastern city of Cottbus, where the group was believed to be based, and three other towns. While the suspicion that the group was planning attacks in the country "could not so far be confirmed," the five remain under investigation for suspected membership in a terrorist group. Mobile phones, written material and bank documents were seized during the weekend raids, but no explosives or material to make them were found. So the investigation is still pretty fuzzy... Hope they didn't move too early... The Algerian, identified only as Tayeb C., was alleged to have taken a coordinating role and "to have contacted the four other suspects ... to prepare and carry out attacks" in Germany, the statement said. On Sunday, he was still held on an unrelated, prior deportation order. Frauke Scheuten, a spokeswoman for federal prosecutors, wouldn't disclose the identity or nationalities of the other four. The investigation has turned up no evidence of any specific targets the group planned to hit, she said — responding to German media reports that the group was targeting the U.S. air base at Spangdahlem, near Germany's western border with Luxembourg, Jewish facilities in Berlin and Frankfurt, or an American radio station in Frankfurt. The usual favored targets. Not a lot of imagination there... |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |