Reprieve for two Iranians jailed for life over terrorism

Ahmad Abolfathi Mohammed and Sayeed Mansour Mousavi in court on September 16, 2014. PHOTO | PAUL WAWERU |

What you need to know:

  • On Wednesday, Justice Luka Kimaru directed that the two convicts now serve 15 years from the date of the sentence.
  • The two Iranians arrived in Kenya on June 12, 2012 and travelled to Mombasa on the same day to receive the explosives.

Two Iranians jailed for life over terrorism have won a reprieve after a judge reduced their sentence to 15 years.

Mr Ahmad Abolfathi Mohammed and Mr Sayeed Mansour Mousavi had appealed against the sentence on the grounds that it was unjustified and the alleged offence was incomplete.

On Wednesday, Justice Luka Kimaru directed that the two convicts now serve 15 years from the date of the sentence.

The two were convicted of plotting attacks against Western interests in Kenya.

They were arrested in June 2012 and linked to a 15kg stash of military-grade explosives identified as RDX that was found on a Mombasa golf course.

Experts who testified during the trial said the RDX cache was capable of bringing down the Times Tower building in Nairobi, the tallest building in East Africa.

The two Iranians arrived in Kenya on June 12, 2012 and travelled to Mombasa on the same day to receive the explosives.

They travelled back to Nairobi, where they were arrested in a hotel on Uhuru Highway after receiving the explosives from an accomplice, who remains at large.