'Very dangerous' British Muslim convicted of leading terror cell

Published on Thursday 18 December 2008 21:10

A BRITISH Muslim was convicted yesterday of being a member of al-Qaeda and directing a terrorist organisation in Britain – the first conviction of its kind in the UK.

Rangzieb Ahmed, 33, was found guilty by a jury at Manchester Crown Court of belonging to the group and of leading a three-man terrorist cell engaged in plotting an attack, possibly overseas.

His co-defendant, Habib Ahmed, 29, who is no relation, was also found guilty of belonging to al-Qaeda. The two will be sentenced tomorrow.

Detective Chief Superintendent Tony Porter said: "Rangzieb Ahmed is a very dangerous man. He consorts with senior terrorist figures and has devoted his life to creating and working with terrorist networks.

"We believe that he was intent on masterminding terrorist attacks and would have considered mass murder part of his duty. We don't know where Rangzieb's next target would have been, or what exactly he was working towards, but we are sure he was attack-planning.

"What we do know is that he and Habib Ahmed had close contact with al-Qaeda's senior figures and were arranging for British citizens to visit terrorist camps and meet those willing to fund terrorism.

"There is no doubt Rangzieb Ahmed was at the centre of the al-Qaeda web and was using his position to manipulate people, drawing them in too.

"Today's conviction is a significant success for the UK counter-terrorist effort, and reflects our hard work and commitment to combating the evolving terrorist threat."

Habib Ahmed, a taxi driver, was arrested after he was found in possession of two diaries belonging to Rangzieb Ahmed, which contained details, written in invisible ink, of top al-Qaeda operatives.