2008 Mumbai terror attack suspect & David Headley's close aid Rana to remain in US custody

2008 Mumbai terror attack suspect and a former Chicago businessman will remain in the United States as a federal judge in Los Angeles weighs whether he should be extradited to India for his alleged role in the terror attack that killed more than 160 people. 

Tahawwur Rana, a Pakistani-born Canadian, is wanted by Indian authorities for his alleged involvement in the said attacks that are sometimes referred to as India's 9/11. An Indian warrant for his arrest was issued in August 2018. 

On June 24, Magistrate Jacqueline Chooljian ordered the defence attorneys and prosecutors to file additional documents by July 15. Until then Rana will remain in federal custody. It is pertinent to note that the extradition hearing was held in court at the request of the Indian government.

Tahawwur Rana & David Headley were childhood friends

Indian authorities have alleged Rana of conspiring with his childhood friend David Coleman Headley to assist the Pakistani terror organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba or “Army of the Good,” in the orchestration of the 2008 deadly terror attacks in Mumbai that killed over 165 people and injured more than 200 and caused USD 1.5 Bn damage.

Headley and Rana attended military high school in Pakistan together. Rana's immigration law centre in Chicago as well as a satellite office in Mumbai which was allegedly used as a front of their terrorism activities between the year 2006 and 2008, prosecutors argued. 

Rana's attorney said their client was not aware of Headley's terrorism plot and was merely trying to help his childhood pal with setting up a business office in Mumbai. They also mentioned Headley was a pathological liar who had deceived the US government on multiple instances in many criminal cases and that his testimony should not be considered credible. In fact, the attorneys' alleged that Headley had used Rana to further his terrorism efforts without Rana's knowledge. 

However, US prosecutors failed to prove before the court that Rana had directly supported the Mumbai attacks. Court papers show that Rana's attorneys said that because he has been acquitted of the Mumbai-related charges in the US, extraditing him to India would tantamount to double jeopardy. 

Rana’s two daughters who attended the hearing declined to comment, so did his lawyers. Reportedly, Rana wore a white jumpsuit and black glasses as well as a mask to the hearing while his ankles were bound.

Only one of the 10 terrorists in the Mumbai terror attacks survived the four-day rampage and went on trial. Kasab was convicted, sentenced to death in India and hanged in 2012. 

Rana's aid to other terror activities

In 2011, Rana was convicted in federal court in Illinois of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism in Denmark for a thwarted plot to attack a Danish newspaper in retaliation to its publication of cartoons that depicted the Prophet Mohammed in 2005. The cartoons stirred anger amongst Muslims because pictures of the prophet are prohibited in the Islam religion. 

In the Denmark case, Rana was sentenced to a 14-year prison term but his punishment was reduced after he claimed to have contracted the COVID-19 infection in a federal California prison in June 2020. He was then ordered a release but was held on an immigration detainer so he could not return to Canada to avoid an Indian extradition request.

Headley ultimately testified against Rana in the Illinois case after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to murder. As part of his plea deal, he can’t be extradited to India.