Dawood’s aide remanded in custody until Sept. 25
London, Aug. 28: Jabir Moti, the Pakistani national described as a “top lieutenant” of organised crime and terror network D- Company, was on Tuesday remanded in custody until September 25 by a UK court.
The 51- year- old, who appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court via live video link from Wandsworth prison in south- west London, is facing extradition to the US on money laundering and extortion charges, which allegedly link up with terrorism funding.
Moti, arrested by Scotland Yard’s Extradition Unit early this month, had been denied bail at his hearing last week as the judge deemed him to be a flight risk.
“At this stage I am remanding you in custody on the same conditions, to appear before the court in four weeks’ time,” Judge Mark Jabbitt told Moti on Tuesday, as he sat with his hands folded and dressed in his prison outfit during the video link.
Moti faces extradition to the US following an FBI investigation dating back to 2005. The UK’s Crown Prosecution Service ( CPS) told the court at the last hearing that Moti faces allegations of conspiracy to launder money and extortion that link up to terrorist offences as well as charges of drug trafficking, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years behind bars.
His defence counsel Toby Cadman put on record for the court at Tuesday’s hearing that his client’s full name should be recorded as Jabir Siddiq, as on his Pakistani passport, instead of Jabir Motiwala, as on the provisional arrest warrant on which Scotland Yard had arrested him on August 17.
The judge said the matter would be raised with the extradition requesting state, the US, before the start of the extradition trial.
Cadman also told the court that while his client is not making a second application for bail at this stage, another bail application will be made in “due course.”