Terror trial tape shows man with 'sample missile'
The jury in the trial of a British businessman accused of attempting to sell anti-aircraft missiles to terrorists in the United States has been shown footage of the alleged sale.
Hemant Lakhani, from London, was secretly filmed as he met an undercover FBI informant in a New Jersey hotel and showed him a sample missile, the court was told.
The 69-year-old denies any links to terrorism and rejects further accusations that he promised to sell a radioactive “dirty bomb”.
According to the tapes, Lakhani smiles and claps his hands as he shows his prospective buyer the missile.
“I can’t believe what we have done,” he allegedly says.
The meeting was the final scene of an FBI sting which led to Lakhani’s arrest in August 2003.
He allegedly told the undercover agent, Muhammad “Haji” Rehman, that rockets he was selling could be used to shoot down 10 to 15 airlines simultaneously on the second anniversary of the September 11 terrorist outrage.
Rehman and Lakhani conducted all their talks in Hindi and Urdu, although Rehman said he typically briefed agents in English during the investigation.
Under cross-examination, Rehman acknowledged that Lakhani knew very little about the missile, was unfamiliar with terms such as “ammo” and did not know how it had been smuggled into New Jersey.
Lakhani’s lawyer, Henry Klingeman, claims his client was simply an ambitious businessman, a “world-class name dropper”, but not a seasoned arms dealer.
The trial continues at New Jersey District Court.
