Terrorism fugitives caught in Hungary jailed in Britain

London, January 8 (MTI) – Two British nationals arrested in Hungary last year for breaching travel bans imposed on them for prior terrorism offences were sentenced to two years in prison in London on Friday.

Omar Brooks, 40 and Simon Keeler, 44, who were jailed in 2008 for over four years in prison for financing terrorist acts, were arrested in eastern Hungary on an international train heading for Romania in November after failing to show valid documents proving their citizenship or a legal stay in Hungary. The men were found carrying large sums of cash.

British daily The Guardian quoted the sentencing judge as saying that there was no evidence that either man had left Britain to commit terrorist offences, adding, however, that this did not mean that their violation of the travel restrictions imposed on them was not serious.

Their defence attorney said Keeler had fled Britain to go look for his family – his wife and six children – in Turkey and Brooks accompanied him to help with the search.

Both men were known to authorities as al-Qaeda sympathisers and to have praised the terrorists who carried out the September 11 attacks on New York.

Photo: MTI

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters