TORONTO—The man charged in an alleged al-Qaida-directed plot to attack a Via Rail passenger train suggested in court Wednesday that he doesn’t recognize the authority of the Criminal Code because it is “not a holy book.”
Chiheb Esseghaier, 30, of Montreal, told the court the five charges against him are based on the Criminal Code and “we know that this Criminal Code is not a holy book.”
“It’s just written by set of creations and the creations they’re not perfect because only the creator is perfect.”
As a result, he said, the “conclusions taken out from these judgments” are unreliable.
Esseghaier will be detained until his next appearance May 23 via video from a detention centre. That’s the same day his co-accused, Raed Jaser, 35, a Toronto resident, is set to appear again in court, also via video.
The pair face several terrorism charges each in what the RCMP is calling the first known alleged plot in Canada directed by al-Qaida. If convicted, they could be sentenced to life in prison.
Jaser’s lawyer, John Norris, has indicated he is preparing a bail application. He has said Jaser, a permanent resident who has been living in Canada for 20 years, “is in a state of shock and disbelief” and denies the allegations against him.
With files from Canadian Press.
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