A federal judge on Monday denied a request by a U.S. citizen, who has been charged with plotting to kill President George W. Bush, to throw out confessions he signed while in Saudi custody when he claims he was tortured. U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee issued two brief orders denying requests by Ahmed Abu Ali, 24, to throw out the confessions he signed and to dismiss the case. Lee did not explain his reasons but said he would issue an opinion detailing his decision at a later date. Abu Ali testified last week that he was arrested in Medina, Saudi Arabia in 2003 and said the day after his arrest that officers from the Saudi domestic security police chained him to the floor, blindfolded him and whipped him to make him talk. After begging them to stop, Abu Ali said he agreed to cooperate and began making confessions which continued after he was transferred to a prison near Riyadh, where he was held for 20 months. The Saudi government has denied torturing Abu Ali. U.S. prosecutors, who based much of their case against Abu Ali on his confessions and other statements made in Saudi Arabia, said there was no evidence that he had been mistreated.
| Bzzzzzt! Too bad, so sad. Thanks for playing, Abu! See you in court.... |