ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A former imam who served 14 years in federal custody after being convicted of terrorism in an FBI sting in upstate New York has been deported to Iraq.
The son and lawyer of Yassin Aref tell the Albany Times Union that he was deported Sunday night.
Aref was imam at an Albany mosque when he was arrested in 2004 for his role in a money laundering scheme involving an FBI informant who posed as an illegal arms dealer. The informant said he needed to launder money from the sale of a shoulder-carried rocket launcher to be used to kill a Pakistani diplomat.
Aref maintained his innocence. His son Salah Muhiddin said Aref is returning to his home country as a free man to start a new life.
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