Akasha kin held over terror charges
A Mombasa court has allowed police to detain three suspected terrorists, among them a woman who is a first cousin of convicted drug barons in the United States, Baktash Akasha (right) and his brother Ibrahim Akasha.
Mombasa senior resident magistrate Rita Orara allowed the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) to detain the suspects — namely Aisha Abdalla (above), Mistwah Kassim and Musab Abdulnasir — at Port Police Station to enable officers complete investigations.
In her ruling, Orora said the suspects should be detained due to the sensitive nature of the matter and the areas that needed to be covered.
“As stated by the investigating officer in his sworn affidavit, l find no harm in allowing the 10 days sought to enable police complete their investigations,” she stated.
The trio is being investigated over plans to commit a terrorist attack, being members of al-Shabab, and possessing a firearm.
Abdalla was seized by ATPU officers at her Kizingo home after the arrest of the first and second suspects, who informed police that she was the holder of a Glock pistol that was to be used during the terror attacks. She is a mother of two children, aged seven and three years, and operates a travel agency within Mombasa.
When the matter came up for hearing, Akasha’s first wife Fatuma Akasha appeared for the first time in solidarity with the Abdalla family, following the conviction of his two sons by a Manhattan court in USA.
