Terror case in doubt
AAP | November 2, 2007
Police interviews conducted with a Sydney man accused of training with a banned terrorist group have been ruled "inadmissible" by a judge.
In the NSW Supreme Court late today, Justice Michael Adams ruled the interviews were inadmissible at any trial of Izhar Ul-Haque because of the conduct of ASIO and Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers.
Ul-Haque is charged with training with the Pakistan-based terrorist group, Lashkar-e-Toiba (LET).
He is accused of receiving weapons and combat training from the organisation during a visit to Pakistan in January and February 2003.
Justice Adams, who permitted the publication of his decision, said the trial of Ul-Haque, who has pleaded not guilty, had now started although a jury had not yet been empanelled.
He said the prosecution intended to rely on alleged admissions made to AFP officers during interviews on November 7 and 12, 2003 and on January 9, 2004.
But lawyers for Ul-Haque argued that what was said during the interviews was inadmissible.
The judge said for reasons of convenience, he decided to determine the question of admissibility prior to empanelling a jury.
"The interviews were extensive and took many hours," he said.
He said he was concerned with the parts relating to what training Ul-Haque had received, whether it was given by LET and whether LET was a terrorist organisation within the meaning of the relevant "code".
