Pakistani student convicted in firearms case in US

A Pakistani student, one of four men accused of attempting to aid Taliban militants, has been convicted in a firearms case in the United States.

Shiraz Syed Qazi was on Tuesday found guilty of unlawful possession of a firearm in a 15-minute trial conducted by US District Court Judge Lee Rosenthal. The accused had waived his right to a jury trial.

A recently established federal law makes it illegal for non-immigrant student visa holders like Qazi to possess firearms.

Qazi's three associates, Adnan Mirza, Kobie Williams and Syed Maaz Shah are accused of material support of terrorism by training to fight with the Taliban against US-led forces.

Authorities based their charges on a July 2005 camping trip in Willis, outside Houston, where the group was photographed holding and firing guns.

FBI agents used Qazi's acknowledgment that "he overheard statements over that weekend" to help connect him to the terrorist plot.

Qazi's cousin, Adnan Mirza, is scheduled for trial in June on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and three charges of illegal firearms possession.

Kobie Williams, 33, pleaded guilty late last year to a conspiracy charge. Williams admitted to paramilitary training and making financial contributions to the Taliban.

A Rice University engineering technician and student at the University of Houston-Downtown, Williams is to be sentenced in May.

Syed Maaz Shah, a 19-year-old student of the University of Texas, is charged with two weapons violations. His trial is set for March.

Federal public defender Brent Newton, who is representing Qazi, filed court papers acknowledging that Qazi knowingly possessed a semi-automatic weapon, but claimed it was not unlawful for his client to have a gun.

"He cannot be subject to criminal liability unless the actor knew he wasn't allowed to do it," Newton argued. "He cannot be criminally punished."

The maximum punishment for the crime is 10 years in prison, but Newton told Qazi's family after the sentence that he will likely serve only a year because of his clean criminal record.

"I think that he violated the law, and he was found guilty," Assistant US Attorney Shelley Hicks said.

Qazi, 26, originally from Karachi, moved to the US on a student visa in 2001 from Kuwait and was studying in Houston Community College. He got married in early 2006.

He was arrested in November 2006 after FBI raided his home. His supporters have created a website called 'Houston Muslims Falsely Accused'.

Newton said he plans to take Qazi's case to the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals. Qazi's sentencing has been scheduled for May 17.