'I’ve come to take Haneef back'
A relative of Mohammed Haneef on Sunday sought fair trial for the doctor charged over last month's failed UK terror plot, reports David McMahon.
A relative of Mohammed Haneef on Sunday sought fair trial for the doctor charged over last month's failed UK terror plot, saying that he was innocent and a “victim of circumstances.”
Imran Siddiqui, a cousin of Haneef’s wife Arshiya Firdous, arrived in Brisbane late Saturday night.
“I've come to take him back — he’s innocent that I know,” Siddiqui was quoted as saying by the media here. “We know the truth is that he's not connected to these things.”
“We all know him as a very good person, as a model citizen and a model person — character-wise, behaviour, everything. He has done well in his studies, a good profession as well.”
Siddiqui said the family was pleased with the legal team so far and thanked the judiciary for granting Haneef bail. He was welcomed to Brisbane by fellow Muslim Emad Soliman, who felt compelled to meet him and support the family.
A PhD student at Griffith University and Democrats candidate for the federal seat of Moreton, Soliman said it was important Siddiqui felt welcome in Australia. “I don't believe in guilt by association,” he said.
Soliman said the 30,000-strong Muslim community in Brisbane was concerned by the case, and confirmed that several members of the community had been questioned by the Federal Police. “I think we're in fear that who's going to be next,” he said.
Haneef's solicitor Peter Russo, who was also at the airport, said he was unsure when Siddiqui would be able to visit Haneef.
With agency inputs