Australia's first convicted terrorist, Jack Roche, has been sentenced to nine years' jail. Roche was facing 25 years behind bars but could been released as early as 2007. Roche was last week convicted of conspiring with Al Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiah to blow up the Israeli embassy in Canberra after changing his plea to guilty. The prosecution wanted a sentence close to the maximum, but Roche received a shortened jail term in return for information he provided to federal authorities. In handing down his decision, Judge Paul Healy said he would have sentenced Roche to 12 years, but reduced it due to the information he gave federal authorities.
| Turned him, did they? I hope the info he's giving is worth it... |
The information was so valuable it prompted the authorities to write a letter to Judge Healy and that letter was also taken into consideration when determining the sentence. Judge Healy admitted making his decision was difficult, with no real precedent. But he said if Roche had not decided that enough was enough, the conspiracy plot to bomb the embassy had every chance of being carried out, and therefore the sentence must be a strong deterrent to others.
Defence lawyer Hylton Quail said his client believed the information he provided to federal authorities may have assisted in the arrest of the alleged mastermind of the Bali bombings, Hambali and senior Al Qaeda member Muktar. "His co-operation has been extremely significant and very valuable to not only the Australian authorities but the American authorities," Mr Quail said. Roche showed no emotion in court, but outside Mr Quail said his client was relieved. "He's got 21 days to consider whether he wants to appeal but at the moment he hasn't made any decisions - he's reasonably happy," he said. Roche will be eligible for parole in four-and-a-half years. With time already spent in custody he may be out in three years. |