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See other news storiesFive convicted of UK bomb plot
30 April 2007
Five men have been convicted and given life sentences for a bomb plot that could have killed hundreds in Britain.
Jurors in the Old Bailey trial heard of plans to target a shopping centre, nightclub and the gas network with a fertiliser bomb.
The plot was smashed by police in 2004 and today, after a year-long trial, five men have been convicted and given life sentences.
Omar Khyam, 25, from Crawley, West Sussex, was found guilty of conspiring to cause explosions likely to endanger life between January 1 2003 and March 31 2004.
Also convicted were Waheed Mahmood, 35, and Jawad Akbar, 23, also of Crawley; Salahuddin Amin, 32, from Luton, Bedfordshire; Anthony Garcia, 24, of Barkingside, east London.
Two other men, Nabeel Hussain and Shujah Mahmood, were found not guilty.
The Home Secretary, John Reid, said, 'Five dangerous terrorists are now behind bars thanks to the hard work of our police and security services. I want to thank the men and women in the police and security service who have worked extremely hard to ensure the perpetrators of this plot have been brought to justice and a major terrorist attack that could have killed and injured many people has been averted.
'The government has invested heavily in counter-terrorism over the last five years. The Security Service will have doubled in size by 2008 but it is important to remember that 100 per cent commitment can never guarantee 100% success. Today's case reminds us all that the terrorist threat we face is real and severe.
'I want to take time now to reflect on the verdicts.'
