PTI
 
New York, Jan 10: A US court has sentenced a Pakistani immigrant to 30 years in prison for plotting to blow up a subway station in Manhattan in 2004 to avenge abuses of Iraqis at the hands of Americans soldiers.

In his statement before sentencing, 24-year-old Shahawar Matin Siraj, who has been held without bail since he was arrested along with another man on August 27, 2004, apologised but blamed a police informer of entrapping him.

During the trial, defence had made similar plea that the informer had lured him but the federal jury had rejected the argument and convicted him.

A police informer had secretly recorded the statements of Siraj about his plans to blow up the station because of his anger at the United States. The tapes were played at the trial.

In the recordings, he had praised Osama bin Laden and predicted more terrorist attacks against America. But he never obtained any explosives nor had set anytime table. Nor was he ever linked to any terrorist group.

Judge Nina Gershon rejected the plea of the defence lawyers that he should not be given more than 10 years sentence.

In seeking a lenient sentence, they had argued that he was not a dangerous psychopath but a misguided and confused youngster.