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Suspected Tamil Tiger heading south
Thursday, 16 October 2008 - 9:31 PM SL Time
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Ramanan Mylvaganam has been ordered extradited to the U.S.
A Federal court judge last week issued an order of committal against the 31-year-old Malton man, who is charged in connection with a North American network that police allege provides weapons to a terrorist group in Sri Lanka.
The judge made his decision after hearing evidence during Mylvaganam`s extradition hearing in Brampton court last month.
Mylvaganam is now in custody, and has 30 days to appeal his case to Justice Minister Robert Nicholson, or officially surrender.
Mylvaganam`s hearing was supposed to take place June 10. American authorities are trying to have him brought to the U.S. to face charges, but he fired his lawyer and was granted more time this past summer.
Mylvaganam, a computer engineering student at the University of Waterloo (UW) who came to Canada from Sri Lanka in 1992, was arrested by the RCMP Aug. 22, 2006 at his Derry Rd. E. apartment. He was picked up on a provisional warrant at the request of American authorities.
One month later, Mylvaganam was granted bail and returned to university, where he continued to pursue a master`s degree until going back into custody last week.
Mylvaganam served as a vice-president of the university`s Tamil Students Association in 2004.
UW spokesperson Martin Van Nierop said any student charged with an offence is, as far as the university is concerned, innocent until proven guilty.
`If they`re not considered an immediate threat to the university community, then they`re okay to go as students,` he said.
Van Nierop said Mylvaganam is no longer involved with the Tamil student group.
Mylvaganam and four other Ontario men have been charged with one count each of conspiring to provide material support and resources to the Tamil Tigers, a political and military organization that has been waging war with the government of Sri Lanka since the 1970s.
In April 2006, the Tigers were added to Canada`s official list of terrorist organizations.
Twelve men have been charged in the joint FBI-RCMP investigation.
The sweep also included arrests in Buffalo, San Jose, Seattle and Connecticut.
According to his brother, Raghu, Mylvaganam was supposed to start a job at Microsoft`s international headquarters in Redmond, Washington, in late 2006, but those plans were put on hold when he was arrested.
U.S. prosecutors say the arrests are in relation to a network of men in Canada and the U.S. that allegedly used members` post-secondary studies as a cover for terrorist activities.
Officials say the group kept in contact with top Tamil Tiger operatives in Sri Lanka and the U.S. It tried to obtain compasses, computers and night-vision goggles for the Tigers, but also had bigger plans that included the purchase of aviation equipment, allege American prosecutors.
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Vishnu
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Joined: Mar 2005
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 18 Oct 2008 04:04:16 GMT Report for Abuse
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According to his brother, Raghu, Mylvaganam was supposed to start a job at Microsoft's international headquarters in Redmond, Washington, in late 2006, but those plans were put on hold when he was arrested.
What now? SL govt. accused of killing Microsoft employees? |
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