U S judge backs case against American 'jihadist'

HOUSTON, Feb 22 (Reuters) A U S judge has ordered a suspected American ''jihadist,'' accused of training with al Qaeda and conspiring to make and use bombs in Somalia, jailed without bail.

U S Magistrate Calvin Botley ruled prosecutors had presented sufficient evidence to support the charges against Daniel Joseph Maldonado, also known as Daniel Aljughaifi.

U S Attorney Don DeGabrielle yesterday said the case would be presented to a grand jury for possible indictment, the next step in the prosecution, by March 13.

According to the FBI, Maldonado, 28, was living in Houston in 2005 when he and his wife and three young children moved to Egypt and then in late 2006 to Somalia so that he could join the fight for an Islamic government there.

Maldonado's court-appointed lawyer challenged the strength of the evidence against the defendant and forced the hearing into a second day so he could review statements prosecutors say were hand-written by Maldonado.

Maldonado was arrested by Kenyan authorities on January 21 after he and other suspected jihadists, or Muslims engaged in jihad or holy war, fled into Kenya to escape troops from the U S-backed Somali government and Ethiopia, which was supporting the government against Islamic militants.

Kenyan authorities notified the U S State Department that they had a U S citizen in custody, and the FBI sent agents to interview him. After being questioned, he was charged and returned to the United States this month.

According to the FBI, Maldonado said he approved of the September 11, 2001, al Qaeda attacks on Washington and New York and would fight and kill Americans if necessary in Somalia.

An unnamed ''cooperating witness'' told the FBI Maldonado trained with al Qaeda and studied how to make and use bombs, FBI agents testified.

Maldonado's wife died of malaria while in Africa, and U S authorities have turned his children over to their grandparents in New Hampshire. Maldonado was reported to have lived in Boston before moving to Houston.

US law bars American citizens from training with groups such as al Qaeda that the US government has designated foreign terrorist organizations. The law also bars Americans from using bombs overseas without U S authority.

Maldonado could receive life in prison if convicted on the charge related to bombs, referred to in the charge as weapons of mass destruction. He could receive a 10-year sentence if convicted of training with al Qaeda.

REUTERS PDS RN0440