Extremist who planned 7/7 anniversary attack in London jailed for life

Asher McShane30 December 2015
WEST END FINAL

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A man who plotted a terror attack in London to coincide with the anniversary of the 7/7 bombings has been jailed for life.

Extremist Mohammed Rehman, 25, planned to bomb the Westfield shopping centre or the Tube and used Twitter for advice on where to strike.

Rehman was sentenced to life with a minimum of 27 years. He was also sentenced to 12 years to run concurrently for possessing an article for terrorist purposes.

He was found guilty along with ex-wife Sana Ahmed Khan yesterday at the Old Bailey.

Prosecutors said Rehman was just days away from completing a device which would have caused multiple casualties in the capital - but his plot was foiled by anti-terror police.

Jailed: Sana Ahmed Khan

Khan, 24, who helped to fund the terror plot, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 25 years.

Rehman stockpiled the chemicals needed to make a huge bomb at his family home in Reading and even filmed himself setting off a test explosion in his back garden.

The couple were found guilty of preparing an act of terrorism around May 28 this year.

Rehman was also convicted of possessing an article for terrorist purposes.

Their plot was aimed to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 bombings in which 52 people were killed.

Devices recovered by police that were shown in evidence at the trial
Thames Valley Police

The jury of seven women and five men found the pair guilty after three days of deliberations.

Counter-terrorism officers foiled the plot after an undercover investigator spotted a tweet about potential targets posted by Rehman.

On May 12, Rehman used a profile picture of Jihadi John to post: "Westfield shopping centre or London underground? Any advice would be appreciated greatly."

It was accompanied by a link to the al Qaida uncensored media release about the 7/7 bombings.

The same day, he trawled YouTube for London bombings and Shehzad Tanweer - one of the 7/7 bombers who he referred to as his "beloved predecessor".

He also told a Twitter user: "Why don't you head to the London Underground on the 7th July if you got the balls."

The undercover investigator, who used the name Abu Mohammed, engaged with Rehman in a private conversation in which the defendant asked him "how dumb these Kuffar are lol".

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