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Brothers get maximum jail for US terrorism

Two Pakistani-born US brothers have been given hefty prison terms after they pleaded guilty to terrorism charges.

Raees Alam Qazi
Two Pakistani-born US brothers have been jailed after pleading guilty to terrorism charges. (AAP)

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Source: AAP


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Two Pakistani-born brothers, who are naturalised US citizens, have received maximum prison sentences after pleading guilty to terrorism charges, including plotting to bomb New York City landmarks.

Raees Alam Qazi, 22, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for planning an attack in New York and also providing material support to the al-Qaeda terrorist organisation.

Sheheryar Alam Qazi, 32, got a 20-year prison sentence after he admitted to encouraging and providing financial support to his brother.

The two men were arrested in 2012 after the younger brother travelled to New York to survey targets such as Wall Street and Times Square.

They pleaded guilty to the terrorism charges in March.

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The brothers, who lived in Florida, also admitted to conspiring to assault federal officers while in pre-trial detention.

In April 2014, the two men punched two US Marshalls while they were being moved within the courthouse in Miami.

US District Court Judge Beth Bloom gave the brothers maximum prison sentences in the US federal court in Miami on Thursday.

Federal prosecutors had recommended somewhat lower terms, with 32 years for Raees Qazi and 17 years for Sheheryar Qazi after they pleaded guilty.


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