By Sophia Tareen
Associated Press
CHICAGO — A Pakistani-American who pleaded guilty to laying the groundwork for the deadly 2008 Mumbai attack will testify in the trial of a Chicago businessman accused of helping his former friend in the plot, federal prosecutors said Monday.
The trial of Tahawwur Rana is being closely watched worldwide for what testimony might reveal about suspected links between the Pakistani militant group blamed in the attacks and the nation’s main intelligence agency, which has been under scrutiny after Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces on May 2 outside Islamabad.
During opening statements, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker said Rana provided cover for David Coleman Headley, who took photos and videos of targets in Mumbai before the attacks and that Rana led Headley to pose as a representative for his Chicago-based immigration businesses. Rana, 50, has pleaded not guilty.
Streicker said Monday that Headley would testify at Rana’s trial. Headley is cooperating with the government and may discuss allegations that Pakistan’s government knew — or possibly helped plan — the attack blamed on the militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba that killed more than 160 people including six Americans.
But attorneys for Rana, who’s also accused of planning an attack that never happened on a Danish newspaper, have said their client was simply duped by his longtime friend and didn’t know what plot was in store. Headley and Rana, a Pakistani-born Canadian, met at one of Pakistan’s most prestigious military boarding schools and stayed in touch as adults.
Copyright 2011 Associated Press