Kenyan court jails 2 in 2013 terror attack

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - A Kenyan court on Friday sentenced two people for up to 33 years in jail after they were found guilty of orchestrating a terror attack on an upscale shopping mall in the capital Nairobi in 2013.

The two were found guilty of aiding Al-Shabaab militants in carrying out the Westgate mall attack on Sept. 21, 2013 which claimed the lives of 67 people.

The suspects -- Mohammed Abdi, who got 33 years in jail, and Hassan Hussein Mustafa, who received 18-year prison sentence -- were facing 12 counts of criminal acts -- including supporting a terror group and conspiracy to commit a terror act.

According to the court’s verdict, Abdi will spend 26 years in jail, while Hussein will spend 11 years since they have already spent seven years in prison during their trial.

The duo has 14 days to appeal the court's decision.

The whereabouts of Abdullahi Omar, another suspect who was released by the court for lack of evidence on Oct. 7, are unknown after he was kidnapped by unknown gunmen shortly after his release.

Omar’s family has appealed to authorities to secure his return.

Somalia-based Al-Shabaab militants had claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that the attack was due to the presence of Kenyan peacekeeping troops in the Horn of Africa country.

Kenyan troops have been operating in Somalia since 2011 under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).