Mumbai Suspect Pleads Not Guilty

Says he's 21 years old; co-defendants also plead not guilty
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted May 6, 2009 10:26 AM CDT
Mumbai Suspect Pleads Not Guilty
Abbas Kazmi, lawyer for the Pakistani gunman Mohammed Ajmal Kasab charged in last year's Mumbai terror attacks, speaks to the media in Mumbai today.   (Rajanish Kakade)

The only surviving suspected gunman in last year's terrorist attacks in Mumbai pleaded not guilty today to all charges against him, including waging war against India and murder. The presiding judge read out all the charges against Mohammed Ajmal Kasab in a Mumbai courtroom; Kasab responded with a plea of not guilty and said, "I don't accept these charges." Kasab will face the death penalty if convicted.

Kasab also told the court that he was 21 years old, prompting laughter in the courtroom because of the defense's recent attempts to prove that Kasab was a minor, which would have meant lighter penalties. The suspect said he was a laborer from the town of Faridkot in Pakistan's Punjab province. His two co-defendants—both Indians accused of helping plot the attack—also pleaded not guilty. (More India stories.)

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