MIAMI (AP) - A Florida federal judge has refused to toss out incriminating evidence gathered by jail informants against a Kenyan man accused of supporting terrorists around the world.
U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro’s ruling Wednesday came after federal prosecutors denied directing the informants to ask certain questions of Mohamed Said and obtain the defense’s trial strategy. Said’s attorney had sought suppression of the informants’ evidence, claiming they were acting as government agents.
Said is scheduled to stand trial in June on eight terrorism-related charges involving alleged support for al-Qaida and terrorism groups in Africa and Syria. Said has pleaded not guilty.
The charges are based on chat room conversations Said allegedly had with undercover FBI operatives. A co-defendant, Gufran Mohammed, is serving a 15-year prison sentence after pleading guilty last year.
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