09 November, 2010

Man pleads not guilty to charge that he plotted to send funds to Somalia terrorists

Man pleads not guilty to charge that he plotted to send funds to Somalia terrorists

By The Associated Press (CP)

ST. LOUIS — A man has pleaded not guilty to charges that he plotted to send money to a terrorist group in Somalia that the U.S. says has ties to al-Qaida.

Thirty-five-year-old Abdi Mahdi Hussein of Minneapolis entered the plea Monday in U.S. District Court in St. Louis, where he was indicted last month with St. Louis taxi driver Mohamud Abdi Yusuf and another man.

Hussein, who is of Somali descent, remains free on his own recognizance.

The government contends that Yusuf and Hussein sent money by wire transfer to al-Shabab supporters in Somalia between 2008 and at least July 2009.

Hussein is charged with one count of conspiracy to structure monetary transactions. Yusuf also faces that count, as well as providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

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