COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - The attorney for a man accused of plotting to blow up a shopping mall in Columbus says his client decided to plead guilty rather than risk life in prison.
Mahir Sherif says Nuradin Abdi was worried about a jury's reaction given the country's current mood.
He says Abdi would not have faced a jury of his peers but rather people with only limited understanding of the issues surrounding the war on terror.
Abdi pleaded guilty in federal court today to conspiring to provide material support to terrorists. He is expected to receive ten years and be deported after serving his sentence.
The Justice Department accuses Abdi of suggesting a plan to attack an unidentified mall during an August 2002 meeting with now-convicted terrorist Iyman Faris and a third suspect, Christopher Paul.
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