2004 Madrid train bombings suspects
Encyclopedia
A list of suspects and convictions related to the 2004 Madrid Train Bombings.
- found guilty and given a 50 year jail sentence, was arrested two days after the March 2004 attacks.
José Emilio Suárez Trashorras- found guilty and given between a 25 to 35 year jail sentence. and was one of the first to be arrested.
Hamid Ahmidan - found guilty and given between a 23 to 25 year sentence. Moroccan and a cousin of Jamal Ahmidan,these men took part in drug trafficking. His release date from prison is November 2030.
Abdelmajid Bouchar - acquitted of all the bombings and still given between a 15 to 18 year sentence, was detained in Belgrade
on August 2005 by Siberian officials. His release date is set for November 2023.
Rachid Aglif - found guilty and given between a 15 to 18 year sentence. he was arrested in April and he was an alleged lieutenant of Jamal Ahmidan, who was suspected of having helped acquire the explosives. His release date is set for November 2025.
Youssef Belhadj - 30, acquitted of bombings but given 12.5-year sentence for membership of a terrorist organisation. He was arrested in Belgium in February 2005 by the Belgian Police, he allegedly set the date for the attacks and was in Spain
for the last-minute preparations. His release date is set for November 2019.
Hassan el-Haski - 45 acquitted of bombings but handed 12-year sentence for membership of a terrorist organisation. He was the leader of the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group
in Spain
, which prosecutors blamed for the bombings. Haski, from Morocco
, was arrested in the Canary Islands
in December 2004. He was accused of having been aware of and having instigated the attacks. Release date is set for November 2019.
Mohamed Bouharrat, guilty and given 12-year sentence, was responsible for recruitment and gathering information on targets. His release date is set for November 2019.
Fouad el-Morabit - guilty, 12-year sentence was being held in March 2004 for allegedly belonging to the Madrid terror cell, he also had contacts with Rabei Osman
. His release date is set for November 2019.
Mouhannad Almallah Dabas - guilty, 12-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2019. .
Saed el-Harrak - guilty, 12-year sentence, currently described as an active cell member. His release date is set for November 2019.
Mohamed Larbi Ben Sellam, guilty, 12-year sentence, was allegedly in charge of bringing propaganda material to meetings of the cell. Prosecutors had asked for 27 years. His release date is set for November 2019.
Basel Ghalyoun - 26, guilty, 12-year sentence, was allegedly had links to Rabei Osman
and the presumed ideological mastermind, Serhan Ben Abdelmajid Fakhet, a Tunisian who also died in the apartment blast. Prosecutors had sought a 12-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2019.
Rafa Zouhier - 27, guilty of obtaining explosives and given 10-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2017.
Abdelilah el-Fadual el-Akil, guilty, nine-year sentence, was alleged close associate of Jamal Ahmidan, he had worked at a house on the outskirts of Madrid
where some bombs had been made there. Prosecutors had asked for 12 years. His release date is set for November 2016.
Rául González Peláez - guilty and given a 5-year sentence, was allegedly helped him gain access to the explosives in exchange for cocaine. Prosecutors had sought an eight-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2015.
Sergio Alvarez Sánchez - guilty, 3-year sentence travelled in January 2004 to Madrid
with a sports bag containing up to 15 kg (33 lbs) of explosives for Jamal Ahmidan. Prosecutors had sought a four-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2012. .
Antonio Iván Reis Palacio - guilty, given 3-year sentence, transported explosives to Madrid, Spain. Spanish prosecutors had sought a four-year jail term. Released on November 2010.
Nasreddine Bousbaa - guilty, given a 3-year sentence, he was allegedly helped forge fake documents. Spanish prosecutors had asked for 13 years in jail. Released on November 2010.
Mahmoud Slimane Aoun - found guilty, 3-year sentence. he was allegedly trying to help Jamal Ahmidan forge documents. Spanish prosecutors had asked for 13 years in jail. He was released on November 2010.
- arrested in Milan
, Italy
on June 2004 by Italian State Police for supporting terrorism in Europe. He is formely held in a Italian prison before transferring to Spain in 2007 and he was an alleged member of al-Jihad by Ayman al-Zawahiri
. Osman was sentenced in Italy
on June 11th, 2006 to 10 years in prison for plotting terror attack in Italy
and afterwards was extradited to Spain
in 2007. On February 2007 Osman's trial began in Madrid
, along with other 28 defendants, for having a key role in the 2004 Madrid train bombings. On October 2007 Osman was acquitted in Madrid from all charges with other 5 suspects.
was arrested May 6, 2004 on a material witness charge, on the basis of a fingerprint found after the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks. Although Spanish authorities were doubtful that the identification was correct, he was held for two weeks in federal custody until they conclusively identified the fingerprint as belonging to another man and was released by the FBI authorities.
- arrested in Quetta, Pakistan in October 2005 as he shopped for breakfast, close to the Pakistani-Afghan border by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence
. He was held as a Spanish citizenship since the late 1980s following marriage to a Spanish woman. He was wanted for the 2004 Madrid bombings and the 2005 London Bombings. The FBI had offered a US$5 million reward for his capture and President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan
stated in that his country has received a huge amount of substantial sums in bounties from American authorities.
Abdelilah Hriz was arrested in his native Morocco
on January 2008 by Moroccan police. In Rabat
, Hriz was found guilty and sentenced up to 20 years in prison on December 2008.
On April 29, 2011 after the 2011 Royal Wedding, the German Federal Police arrested 3 Moroccans in the western German city of Düsseldorf
and one in nearby Bochum
. The Moroccans were linked with the 2004 Madrid train bombings and 2005 London transit attacks. The arrests were based on suspicion they were planning a terror attack in the country, they said. Local media reports that officers had seized large amounts of explosives when the three were arrested. The three alleged terrorists were brought to a judge the next day and they are to remain in detention pending an awating trial.
Defendants
Jamal ZougamJamal Zougam
Jamal Zougam was one of six men implicated in the 11 March 2004 Madrid Train Bombings. He was detained on 13 March 2004, accused of multiple counts of murder, attempted murder, stealing a vehicle, belonging to a terrorist organisation and four counts of carrying out terrorist acts.Spain's El País...
- found guilty and given a 50 year jail sentence, was arrested two days after the March 2004 attacks.
José Emilio Suárez Trashorras- found guilty and given between a 25 to 35 year jail sentence. and was one of the first to be arrested.
Hamid Ahmidan - found guilty and given between a 23 to 25 year sentence. Moroccan and a cousin of Jamal Ahmidan,these men took part in drug trafficking. His release date from prison is November 2030.
Abdelmajid Bouchar - acquitted of all the bombings and still given between a 15 to 18 year sentence, was detained in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
on August 2005 by Siberian officials. His release date is set for November 2023.
Rachid Aglif - found guilty and given between a 15 to 18 year sentence. he was arrested in April and he was an alleged lieutenant of Jamal Ahmidan, who was suspected of having helped acquire the explosives. His release date is set for November 2025.
Youssef Belhadj - 30, acquitted of bombings but given 12.5-year sentence for membership of a terrorist organisation. He was arrested in Belgium in February 2005 by the Belgian Police, he allegedly set the date for the attacks and was in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
for the last-minute preparations. His release date is set for November 2019.
Hassan el-Haski - 45 acquitted of bombings but handed 12-year sentence for membership of a terrorist organisation. He was the leader of the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group
Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group
The Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group or Moroccan Islamic Fighting Group is a Sunni Islamist terrorist organization affiliated with al-Qaeda. It is sometimes referred to as GICM after its French name Groupe Islamique Combattant Marocain...
in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, which prosecutors blamed for the bombings. Haski, from Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, was arrested in the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
in December 2004. He was accused of having been aware of and having instigated the attacks. Release date is set for November 2019.
Mohamed Bouharrat, guilty and given 12-year sentence, was responsible for recruitment and gathering information on targets. His release date is set for November 2019.
Fouad el-Morabit - guilty, 12-year sentence was being held in March 2004 for allegedly belonging to the Madrid terror cell, he also had contacts with Rabei Osman
Rabei Osman
Rabei Osman born July 22, 1971, Alazizya-Samnoud, Egypt is an Egyptian citizen who was arrested on July 2004 by Italian State Police on terrorism charges...
. His release date is set for November 2019.
Mouhannad Almallah Dabas - guilty, 12-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2019. .
Saed el-Harrak - guilty, 12-year sentence, currently described as an active cell member. His release date is set for November 2019.
Mohamed Larbi Ben Sellam, guilty, 12-year sentence, was allegedly in charge of bringing propaganda material to meetings of the cell. Prosecutors had asked for 27 years. His release date is set for November 2019.
Basel Ghalyoun - 26, guilty, 12-year sentence, was allegedly had links to Rabei Osman
Rabei Osman
Rabei Osman born July 22, 1971, Alazizya-Samnoud, Egypt is an Egyptian citizen who was arrested on July 2004 by Italian State Police on terrorism charges...
and the presumed ideological mastermind, Serhan Ben Abdelmajid Fakhet, a Tunisian who also died in the apartment blast. Prosecutors had sought a 12-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2019.
Rafa Zouhier - 27, guilty of obtaining explosives and given 10-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2017.
Abdelilah el-Fadual el-Akil, guilty, nine-year sentence, was alleged close associate of Jamal Ahmidan, he had worked at a house on the outskirts of Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
where some bombs had been made there. Prosecutors had asked for 12 years. His release date is set for November 2016.
Rául González Peláez - guilty and given a 5-year sentence, was allegedly helped him gain access to the explosives in exchange for cocaine. Prosecutors had sought an eight-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2015.
Sergio Alvarez Sánchez - guilty, 3-year sentence travelled in January 2004 to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
with a sports bag containing up to 15 kg (33 lbs) of explosives for Jamal Ahmidan. Prosecutors had sought a four-year sentence. His release date is set for November 2012. .
Antonio Iván Reis Palacio - guilty, given 3-year sentence, transported explosives to Madrid, Spain. Spanish prosecutors had sought a four-year jail term. Released on November 2010.
Nasreddine Bousbaa - guilty, given a 3-year sentence, he was allegedly helped forge fake documents. Spanish prosecutors had asked for 13 years in jail. Released on November 2010.
Mahmoud Slimane Aoun - found guilty, 3-year sentence. he was allegedly trying to help Jamal Ahmidan forge documents. Spanish prosecutors had asked for 13 years in jail. He was released on November 2010.
Acquitted defendants
Rabei OsmanRabei Osman
Rabei Osman born July 22, 1971, Alazizya-Samnoud, Egypt is an Egyptian citizen who was arrested on July 2004 by Italian State Police on terrorism charges...
- arrested in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
on June 2004 by Italian State Police for supporting terrorism in Europe. He is formely held in a Italian prison before transferring to Spain in 2007 and he was an alleged member of al-Jihad by Ayman al-Zawahiri
Ayman al-Zawahiri
Ayman Mohammed Rabie al-Zawahiri is an Egyptian physician, Islamic theologian and current leader of al-Qaeda. He was previously the second and last "emir" of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, having succeeded Abbud al-Zumar in the latter role when Egyptian authorities sentenced al-Zumar to life...
. Osman was sentenced in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
on June 11th, 2006 to 10 years in prison for plotting terror attack in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and afterwards was extradited to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 2007. On February 2007 Osman's trial began in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, along with other 28 defendants, for having a key role in the 2004 Madrid train bombings. On October 2007 Osman was acquitted in Madrid from all charges with other 5 suspects.
Wrongful arrest
Brandon MayfieldBrandon Mayfield
Brandon Mayfield is an American attorney in Washington County, Oregon. He is best known for being erroneously linked to the 2004 Madrid train bombings. On May 6, 2004, the FBI arrested Mayfield as a material witness in connection with the Madrid attacks, and held him for over two weeks...
was arrested May 6, 2004 on a material witness charge, on the basis of a fingerprint found after the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks. Although Spanish authorities were doubtful that the identification was correct, he was held for two weeks in federal custody until they conclusively identified the fingerprint as belonging to another man and was released by the FBI authorities.
Captured suspects
Mustafa Setmariam NasarMustafa Setmariam Nasar
Mustafa bin Abd al-Qadir Sitt Maryam Nasar is a suspected al-Qaeda member and writer. He has held Spanish citizenship since the late 1980s following marriage to a Spanish woman....
- arrested in Quetta, Pakistan in October 2005 as he shopped for breakfast, close to the Pakistani-Afghan border by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence
Inter-Services Intelligence
The Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence , is Pakistan's premier intelligence agency, responsible for providing critical national security intelligence assessment to the Government of Pakistan...
. He was held as a Spanish citizenship since the late 1980s following marriage to a Spanish woman. He was wanted for the 2004 Madrid bombings and the 2005 London Bombings. The FBI had offered a US$5 million reward for his capture and President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
stated in that his country has received a huge amount of substantial sums in bounties from American authorities.
Abdelilah Hriz was arrested in his native Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
on January 2008 by Moroccan police. In Rabat
Rabat
Rabat , is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco with a population of approximately 650,000...
, Hriz was found guilty and sentenced up to 20 years in prison on December 2008.
On April 29, 2011 after the 2011 Royal Wedding, the German Federal Police arrested 3 Moroccans in the western German city of Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
and one in nearby Bochum
Bochum
Bochum is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, western Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area and is surrounded by the cities of Essen, Gelsenkirchen, Herne, Castrop-Rauxel, Dortmund, Witten and Hattingen.-History:...
. The Moroccans were linked with the 2004 Madrid train bombings and 2005 London transit attacks. The arrests were based on suspicion they were planning a terror attack in the country, they said. Local media reports that officers had seized large amounts of explosives when the three were arrested. The three alleged terrorists were brought to a judge the next day and they are to remain in detention pending an awating trial.