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THE FITH PERSON ALSO PLEADS GUILTY IN THE SECOND STING OPERATION AGAINST TAMIL TIGERS ISOLATING THE SRI LANKAN TAMIL TO STAND TRIAL BY HIMSELFBy Walter JayawardhanaAnother accused in the second sting operation against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) , the Sigaporean Arms dealer Haniffa Bin Osman pleaded guilty, United States Attorney Rod Rosenstein said in a statement. Isolating the only Sri Lanka Tamil accused in this case all others
by now have pleaded guilty. "The disruption of the supply chain of this organization should reassure the public that the US government is committed to dismantling terrorist groups worldwide," said FBI special agent William Chase. All face long jail terms. "Keeping sophisticated US weapons from falling into the hands of terrorists has never been more important," said James Dinkins, special agent for the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Baltimore. "This three-year undercover investigation ... highlights the reach and impact of international arms trafficking." The Tamil Tigers, another name for the LTTE have been listed as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States since 1997. US attorney Rod Rosenstein said the Singaporean Arms Agent, Haniffa Bin Osman had pleaded guilty Thursday April 5 to the charges of conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and to money laundering. In a statement, the Justice Department said that Osman conspired with two Indonesians to buy 53 military weapons, including sniper rifles, machine guns and grenade launchers as well as ammunition and night-vision devices for the LTTE. They contacted an undercover business in Maryland to request a price list and negotiate a deal.. The statement further pointed out. As the undercover operation went on, Osman met in July with undercover
FBI agents in Baltimore to discuss transferring the arms to vessels
in the Indian Oceans to be delivered in Sri Lanka. In August some 250,000 dollars was wired from a Malaysian bank to an undercover US bank account as a down payment for the weapons' purchase, it further said. Osman then travelled to Guam to inspect the weapons including two surface-to-air missiles, and a second down payment of 452,000 dollars was made.The wanted to buy the missiles to down the Israeli made kfirs.Osman was joined in Guam by retired Indonesian general Erick Wotulo, 60, and they both met with undercover agents to discuss shipping the weapons to Sri Lanka. They were both arrested in September in Guam. "We will use all available legal tools to prevent terrorism, including undercover operations targeting people who attempt to obtain military weapons in violation of American law," Us Attorney Rod Rosenstein, further pointed out. . The other Indonesians charged in the case are Haji Subandi, 70; Reinhard
Rusli, 34 and Helmi Soedirdja, 33. They along with Wotulo are scheduled
to be sentenced in the coming months while. Osman is expected to be
sentenced in June |
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