Charity worker acquitted of terrorism offences
Our Terrorism team in Special Casework, headed by Senior Partner Richard Egan, supported by Vajahat Sharif and Somsul Hoque, have secured the acquittal of a charity worker accused of terrorism offences. Mr Pervez Rafiq from Huddersfield, was facing allegations of using convoys to provide financial and material support to extremists in Syria along with three others. It was alleged they were using aid convoys bound for Syria to transport money and items which would be used to commit terrorist offences. Mr Rafiq, a prominent charity fundraiser had raised over £200,000,00 for charity organising humanitarian aid convoys. He was targeted by MI5 who offered him £30,000 to work for them, which had been gathering intelligence on infiltration of convoys. Mr Rafiq also travelled on a aid convoy with Mr Henning who was later captured by IS and taken hostage who was subsequently beheaded by Mohammed Emwazi (Jihadi John) in October 2014. Mr Rafiq made a high profile appeal to IS for the release of Henning. After a long trial at the Old Bailey Mr Rafiq was acquitted along with one of his other co-defendants. Two others were convicted of involvement in funding terrorism.