EDMONTON — A Canadian accused of supporting a terror attack on U.S. troops in Iraq was planning to leave Edmonton just before he was arrested by the RCMP, his bail hearing was told Wednesday.
Sayfildin Tahir Sharif’s wife told court the couple was having problems and she suspected he was leaving for Toronto.
Cara Rain also told the judge she still loves Sharif, 38, but she has had an offer of marriage from another man.
Rain, who wore a black head-covering, said she has four children, that Sharif helped bring order to her life, and that she doesn’t believe he contributed to the terror attacks.
Sharif’s lawyer, Bob Aloneissi, is seeking $10,000 bail and stringent conditions akin to house arrest.
The U.S. Department of Justice opposes Sharif getting bail. In a letter sent to the judge hearing the bail application, Justice officials say Sharif is suspected of wanting to take part in terror attacks in Iraq and the U.S.
Justice officials also say in the letter that he poses a significant threat to the community, and no release conditions would ensure he would not attack innocent civilians.
Federal Crown prosecutor Jim Shaw argued that Sharif’s ties to Edmonton are weak and his relationship with his wife was ending.
Shaw said this is strongest case he’s seen to keep someone in custody pending an extradition hearing, which he predicts won’t start before June and will be a lengthy process.
At that hearing, the judge will decide if Sharif should be deported to the United States. The federal justice minister would also have to give consent and that decision could be appealed.
Sharif was arrested by RCMP in Edmonton last month at the request of the FBI and has been in custody since.
Aloneissi has said his client wants to stay in Canada and fight the charges.
Sharif is an ethnic Kurd who came to Toronto from Iraq in 1993 before moving to Edmonton and working for stucco companies.
He is charged in the United States with supporting a multinational terrorist network that took part in a suicide bombing which killed five soldiers in Iraq near a base in Mosul in April 2009.
He faces a life sentence if convicted.
The FBI says the terrorist group is also believed to be responsible for another suicide bombing that killed seven Iraqis on March 31, 2009, at a police station.
The U.S. Department of Justice says Sharif was charged based on evidence gathered in Canadian court-authorized wiretaps and search warrants.
The case touches the highest levels of Canadian policy making. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said that threats to Canada or the United States constitute a threat to both countries.
RCMP have said they have a complete profile of Sharif, but can’t release information because it will be part of the extradition hearing.