A Montrealer who served time in the past for providing support to the terrorist group al-Qaida — and who was charged last year for allegedly threatening to kill many people in Montreal — could be found criminally responsible for his actions if his case does eventually go to trial, a psychiatrist has determined.
On Tuesday, during a hearing at the Montreal courthouse before Quebec Court Judge Martin Chalifour, a defence lawyer representing Mohamed Abdullah Warsame, 52, confirmed that his client was evaluated at the Philippe Pinel Institute.
A psychiatrist found that, if Warsame’s two cases go to trial, he could be found criminally responsible for his actions, attorney Leonard Waxman told the court.
A prosecutor in the case also said Warsame “was found liable” and that the Crown is ready to set a trial date.
“I have (a different) psychiatrist to consult. We have to decide on a strategy, how we are going to handle the case,” Waxman said while requesting that the case be delayed to a date near the end of May.
“If there is going to be a trial, in both cases he will admit all the facts and the psychiatist will testify. If there is a guilty plea, the psychiatrist will still testify (at the sentencing stage).”
Warsame was first arrested last June. The RCMP alleged in a statement last year that Warsame “told an Old Brewery Mission employee he intended to commit an attack with the goal of killing a large number of people.” The threat reportedly involved setting off bombs in the métro system.
Earlier this year, Warsame made his first court appearance on two new charges, including another count of uttering threats. The other charge alleges Warsame conveyed “information that, in all the circumstances, is likely to cause a reasonable apprehension that terrorist activity is occurring or will occur, without believing the information to be true.”
The new charges involved alleged threats made on Nov. 20 while Warsame was behind bars at the detention centre. The investigation was handled by the Montreal police and a warrant for his arrest was issued on Dec. 30.
He is alleged to have told Passport Canada employees that he would “burn or destroy” Passport Canada buildings in Montreal and Quebec City.
According to court documents filed in a criminal case in the U.S. that was brought against Warsame many years ago, he told the FBI he visited two al-Qaida training camps while he was in Afghanistan and attended lectures by Osama bin Laden.
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