Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

A Kenyan man convicted of plotting a 9/11-style terrorist attack on the United States is set to be sentenced, with federal prosecutors pushing for a life term.

Cholo Abdi Abdullah, a member of the Somalia-based militant group Al-Shabaab, trained as a pilot in the Philippines with plans to hijack a commercial plane and crash it into a skyscraper in Atlanta.

ABC reports that prosecutors described the plot as a chilling attempt to replicate the September 11, 2001 attacks of Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda.

Abdullah was arrested in July 2019, just before obtaining his commercial pilot's license, after spending months training in Somalia and the Philippines.

According to prosecutors, he was inches away from executing his deadly plan.

Prosecutors revealed that Abdullah joined Al-Shabaab in 2015 after becoming more religious and following the teachings of Anwar al-Awlaki, a known extremist.

He underwent months of training in Somalia, learning to fire assault rifles and make explosives before being sent to flight school in the Philippines.

“Abdullah trained with al Shabaab for months in Somalia to become a deadly terrorist, and then spent months at flight school preparing to hijack a commercial aircraft to crash it into a building in the United States. Abdullah relentlessly pursued his goals and was on the cusp of getting a commercial pilot license while conducting extensive attack planning, such as how to breach an airplane cockpit door," Department of Justice reported after his conviction

Authorities were alerted after Abdullah confided in his mother about joining Al-Shabaab. She reported him to security agencies, leading to his eventual arrest and extradition to the United States.

Facebook messages presented in court showed communication between Abdullah and his handlers about training, attack planning, and financial support.

However, Abdullah, who represented himself during his trial, appeared in court for sentencing but requested new legal representation.

"I was thinking of having new lawyers who will represent me. I want to start fresh," he told Judge Analisa Torres.

Federal prosecutors argue that his specialized pilot training, financed by Al-Shabaab, makes him a continuous threat to global security.

"The defendant’s terrorism crimes, combined with his specialized, Al-Shabaab-financed pilot skills, underscore that he poses a real and ongoing threat to innocent lives around the world," prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memo.

The judge granted his request, appointing new lawyers and postponing his sentencing to April 7.

Source: TUKO.co.ke