Guyanese suspect denies role in 2007 plot to blow up fuel tanks at JFK airport in NYC

Suspect denies role in JFK airport plot in NYC

NEW YORK — A former member of Parliament in Guyana has testified that he was not involved in a 2007 plot to blow up New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Former Guyanese official Abdul Kadir and co-defendant Russell Defreitas are on trial in federal court in Brooklyn.

Prosecutors say the men were out to cause a catastrophe that would dwarf the World Trade Center attack.

Kadir took the stand on Tuesday and declared his innocence.

Prosecutors say Defreitas and informant Steven Francis showed Kadir a videotape of airport fuel tanks and he expressed interest in a plot to blow them up.

Kadir testified that he did not say no right away because he was hoping that Defreitas and Francis would introduce him to rich American Muslims who might help finance a mosque in Guyana.

Information from: The New York Times, www.nytimes.com