A British man appeared in court after he was accused of directing the activities of Somalia-based terrorist group Al-Shabaab.
Jermaine Grant, 43, has also been accused of three counts of attending a commando training group with the Islamist militant organisation in the Somalian city of Kismayo.
He has also been charged with two counts of possession of an AK47 assault rifle for terrorist purposes, following an investigation by counter terrorism officers.
The charges relate to a period between December 31, 2007, and January 1, 2010, when Al-Shabaab was operating in Somalia.
Grant, who was born in London but is currently of no fixed address, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
He was wearing a grey tracksuit when he appeared in the dock, flanked by two armed Metropolitan Police officers.
The defendant spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth during the short hearing.
Prosecutor Carl Kelvin said he was arrested in Kenya in 2008 while dressed as a woman in a burka.
Jermaine Grant, 43, of no fixed address, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court (pictured, file photo) on Thursday over the charges
‘Members of Al-Shabaab attacked the prison and freed him,’ the lawyer said.
He explained Grant attended the commando training camp and fought for Al-Shabaab as a platoon leader, engaging in battles and ambushes, between 2009 and 2011.
The defendant also trained others to use weapons, he added.
Al-Shabaab was proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the UK in 2010.
District judge Nina Tempia remanded Grant in custody to appear back at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on April 16.
Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s special crime and counter terrorism division, said: ‘We have decided to prosecute Jermaine Grant with directing the activities of a terrorist organisation, three counts of attending a place for terrorist purposes and two counts of possession of an article for terrorist purposes.
‘The charges relate to Mr Grant’s alleged involvement in 2008 and 2009 with Al-Shabaab, a terrorist organisation operating in Somalia.
‘Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring this case to court and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
‘We have worked closely with the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command as it carried out its investigation.
‘We remind all concerned that criminal proceedings against this defendant are active and that he has the right to a fair trial.’
Acting Commander Kris Wright, of Counter Terrorism Policing London, said: ‘These are serious charges and come as the result of a long-running investigation.
‘This case shows we will always pursue anyone suspected of being involved in terrorist activity, no matter where in the world or how long ago it is alleged to have taken place.’
Al-Shabaab is a jihadi insurgent group active in Somalia and, more recently, in Kenya and across East Africa.
It developed in the early 2000s alongside and later in partnership with the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), a group of Sharia courts in the Somalian capital of Mogadishu.
The coalition overran the city and installed themselves as administrators there and across much of the rest of the country in 2006.
Al-Shabaab, which translates as ‘Movement of Jihadi Youth’, was the young, radical armed wing of the UIC.
The union had been founded in the early 2000s to handle the fallout from the ongoing Somali Civil War.
But the organisation outlasted the UIC, which was ousted from Mogadishu in December 2006 by Ethiopia.
Addis Ababa staged the interventions over fears for its security and regional and international interests.
Al-Shabaab went on to launch a successful guerilla insurgency, conquering large parts of Somalia, including crucial port cities like Kismayo.
It now administrates many of these regions, primarily across the south and southwest of the country, which is de facto referred to as the Islamic Emirate of Somalia.
The group, which is allied to transnational Islamist terrorist organisation al-Qaeda, is estimated to have between 5,000 and 9,000 fighters.
This is a breaking news story – further updates to follow.
