Canarias
Spanish National Court acquits Moroccan suspect charged with extolling terrorism
By m.p.
Nov 8, 2007 - 10:18 PM

A young Moroccan man allegedly seen in Telde on 11th March 2004 wearing a T-shirt depicting Osama bin Laden has been acquitted at his trial in the National Court, after the only witness against him failed to turn up. The prosecutor said the case could not go ahead without his evidence.

The witness had said Sidi Blaiha shouted out that he was pleased about the terrorist attack in Madrid.

The accused admitted to wearing the T-shirt at his trial, but denied any reference to the tragedy in Madrid. He also mentioned an argument with the man who reported him to police on 13th March that year, which he said took place two days previously on a matter unrelated to the allegations.

He faced 18 months in prison for extolling terrorism, and had already spent more than a month on remand after he failed to turn up for the first hearing.