RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - A Russian member of the Taliban made his first appearance in a federal court in Virginia on Tuesday, marking the first time a military detainee from Afghanistan has been brought to the U.S. for trial.
Irek Hamidullin's appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge David Novak represents the Obama administration's latest attempt to show it can use the criminal court system to deal with terror suspects. His arraignment on 12 terrorism charges has been set for Friday morning before U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson, a former federal prosecutor.
U.S. officials say Hamidullin is a Russian veteran of the Soviet war in Afghanistan who stayed in the country and joined the Taliban. He was captured in 2009 after an attack on Afghan border police and U.S. soldiers in Khowst province. He had been held at the U.S. Parwan detention facility at Bagram airfield before being brought to the U.S.
Among the charges Hamidullin faces in an indictment unsealed Tuesday are providing material support to terrorists, conspiracy and attempt to destroy an aircraft of the U.S. Armed Forces and conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction. The "mass destruction" charge carries a possible death sentence, but Assistant U.S. Attorney James Gillis said the attorney general is not seeking death because of insufficient aggravating factors. Several of the counts are punishable by up to life in prison.
Hamidullin, shackled and heavily guarded by federal agents, said little during his initial appearance, where Novak advised him of his rights and asked if the defendant understood the charges. Federal public defender Robert Wagner and attorney Claire Cardwell were appointed to represent him.
According to the 19-page indictment, Hamidullin was an officer and tank commander in the Russian military during the 1980s and was trained in the use of such weapons as anti-aircraft machine guns and portable rockets. He became affiliated with the Taliban in 2001.