March 22, 2006
BBC News
The plan was to buy it from the Russian mafia in Belgium, the jury heard.
Image: The men, one of whom cannot be pictured, deny all the charges
Four men, of Crawley, West Sussex, one of Horley, Surrey, one of Ilford, east London, and one of Luton, Bedfordshire, deny conspiring to cause explosions.
Four of the men also deny having chemicals suitable for bomb-making. The trial is expected to last five months.
The second day of the trial heard claims that one suspect had talked of bombing the Bluewater shopping centre in Kent, and allegations that two men had been trained in the use of the ricin poison in Pakistan.
The court heard that in 2001, when Salahuddin Amin had been in Pakistan, he had been asked by Abu Munthir, a man he had met at a mosque in his hometown of Luton, to contact a man named Abu Annis about a "radio-isotope bomb".
Prosecutor David Waters QC told the jury: "Amin did so via the internet and Abu Annis said they had made contact with the Russian mafia in Belgium and from the mafia they were trying to buy this bomb."
Mr Amin later told police he did not believe the offer could be genuine.
But the negotiation was "an indication as to the trust imposed in Amin and his position in the Pakistani end of the organisation", Mr Waters added.
Photo: Omar Khyam allegedly proposed pubs and nightclubs as targets (John Connor Press Associates)
Earlier, Mr Waters said the seven defendants had been heard discussing bomb targets on Sunday 22 February 2004 at the home of one of the defendants, Jawad Akbar, in Uxbridge, west London.
They had already acquired "most of the necessary components" to launch a bombing campaign, with 600kg of ammonium nitrate fertiliser and a smaller amount of aluminium powder - later recovered from a west London storage depot by detectives, according to the prosecution.
Jawad Akbar referred to attacks upon the utilities, gas, water or electrical supplies —David Waters QC
Several of the defendants were trained in how to cause explosions at a camp in Pakistan, where many of them have family connections, the prosecution says.
Mr Waters told the Old Bailey: "Jawad Akbar referred to attacks upon the utilities, gas, water or electrical supplies."
The prosecution alleged that Mr Akbar also said: "The biggest nightclub in central London, no one can put their hands up and say they are innocent - those slags dancing around."
Denials
Mr Akbar had already been recorded telling his wife he did not want to appear ostentatiously religious, the jury heard.
He told her: "They are going to train me up and probably send me back here", according to the prosecution.
On 19 March 2004, Waheed Mahmood was recorded in Omar Khyam's Suzuki Vitara car, which UK police and the security services had bugged in a security operation codenamed Hobbit, the jury heard.
'Little explosion'
He raised the possibility of planting a bomb at the large Bluewater shopping centre in Kent the following day, a Saturday, according to the prosecution.
Waheed Mahmood suggested "a little explosion at Bluewater - tomorrow if you want", the jury heard.
Mr Mahmood, who worked for a contractor for gas and electricity infrastructure company Transco, was heard saying the Madrid bombs were beautiful, the prosecution said.
The jury also heard that Mr Akbar had been recorded saying "if we get raided today we're finished", after searching for two CDs with Transco written on them.
Mr Amin, 31, Mr Akbar, 22, Mr Khyam, 24, his brother Shujah Mahmood, 19, and Waheed Mahmood, 34, all of Crawley, West Sussex, Anthony Garcia - also known as Rahman Adam - 23, of Ilford, east London, and Nabeel Hussain, 20, of Horley, Surrey, deny conspiring to cause explosions.
Mr Khyam, Mr Garcia and Mr Hussain deny possessing ammonium nitrate fertiliser.
Mr Khyam and Shujah Mahmood deny possessing aluminium powder.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4832740.stm