Of course, it’s inconceivable that the father would hold to the same ideology held by the son. Lodi Jihad Update: “Father Charged in U.S. Terror Probe Freed,” from AP, with thanks to all who sent this in:
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – A man whose son was convicted of supporting terrorism by attending an al-Qaida camp in Pakistan was released Monday after nearly a year in federal custody.
Umer Hayat, a 48-year-old ice cream vendor, had been held since he and his son, Hamid, were arrested last June.
Umer Hayat was charged with two counts of lying to the FBI about his son’s attendance at the training camp, but his case ended in a mistrial last week after the jury said it was deadlocked.
Prosecutors must decide by Friday if they will seek a new trial….
Umer Hayat will be confined to his home in the Central Valley agricultural town of Lodi and was fitted with an electronic monitoring device.
A separate jury last week convicted Hamid Hayat, 23, of one count of providing material support to terrorists and three counts of lying to the FBI.
He faces a minimum of 30 years in prison when he is sentenced July 14. His attorney, Wazhma Mojaddidi, said she would seek a new trial.
Both men had given videotaped confessions to FBI agents that were played to jurors. Defense lawyers said their clients gave the confessions after they were worn down by hours of questioning and were merely responding to leading questions by FBI agents.