Jury begins deliberations in Chicago terrorism case

Jury begins deliberations in Chicago terrorism case

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Jurors are scheduled to begin deliberating Wednesday in the trial of a Chicago man accused of helping terrorists.

When the jurors start deliberating, they’ll be asking what Tahawwur Rana knew. Did he know he was supporting a terrorist group in Pakistan? And did he know his Devon Avenue immigration company was being used as cover to help terrorists do reconnaissance work in Mumbai, India and Copenhagen, Denmark to plan attacks?

A lot of the trial hinged on the testimony of David Headley, who admitted to doing that recon work and testified against Rana. But he has a sketchy past that Rana’s defense exploited. Prosecutor Dan Collins told jurors that, even without Headley’s testimony, Rana’s emails and conversations with Headley showed he knew what was up.

Rana’s attorney, Charles Swift, told reporters otherwise.

“The emails show exactly what was going on,” Swift said. “It shows that Dr. Rana was systematically cut out of any information that might be criminal.”

Swift said Headley duped Rana for 30 years, using him for money and help with immigration papers without cluing Rana in on what he was up to.