On trial: Jermaine Grant, from East Ham, appeared at a Kenyan court accused of terrorism offences

East Ham man faces terrorism charges in Kenya

Luke Jacobs Friday, May 11, 2012
1:50 PM

An East Ham man has gone on trial in Kenya accused of taking part in a failed terrorist plot late last year.

Jermain Jhon Grant, as he was named in court documents, sat silent as the prosecution’s first witness gave evidence in a magistrates’ court in the coastal town of Mombasa yesterday.

The 29-year-old is charged in connection with what Kenyan police say was his role in a plot to kill Western tourists.

The witness, Hassan Mohammed, said he helped Grant find a Kenyan wife.

He told the court Grant, arrested in Mombasa on December 19 last year, claimed he was a car and mobile phones dealer.

Grant is already serving a jail term after admitting entering Kenya illegally. He denies possession of bomb-making material with ‘intent to cause loss of lives to innocent civilians.’

The case was adjourned until August 15 this year.

Kenya has been on high alert for possible terrorist strikes after sending its troops into Somalia last October.

British citizens have been advised by the Foreign Office not to travel to within 60km of the Somali border.