Detroit: The young Nigerian man dubbed the
"underwear bomber" after trying to blow up a packed US-bound
airliner wants a new lawyer to help him with an upcoming
sentencing hearing.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 25, represented himself in the
high profile case and pleaded guilty on the second day of his
October trial against the advice of his court-appointed
standby counsel.
He faces a mandatory minimum of life in prison without
parole after pleading guilty to eight terrorism charges
related to the plot to kill 289 people on a transatlantic
flight using explosives hidden in his underwear.
In a letter posted on the court's docket Monday,
Abdulmutallab told Judge Nancy Edmunds that his relationship
with standby counsel Anthony Chambers, a prominent Detroit
criminal lawyer, "is strained to say the least."
He complained that Chambers hasn't visited him since the
trial, sending instead associates to help prepare for the Jan
12 sentencing hearing.
He also accused Chambers and his associates of lying to
him and treating him "with contempt."
He asked Edmunds to appoint a Muslim lawyer, writing "I
find there is more understanding when the person is of the
same religion."
Edmunds set a hearing to deal with the motion for January
6.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, December 21, 2011, 16:37