UK: Man found guilty of funding Brussels bomb suspect

LONDON

A South West London court on Tuesday found a Birmingham man guilty of providing £3,000 ($3,700) to a key suspect in the deadly Paris and Brussels terror attacks.

Zakaria Boufassil, 26, was convicted by the Kingstown Crown Court of engaging in conduct in preparation of acts of terrorism.

Brussels bombing suspect Mohamed Abrini, who is known as the “man in the hat”, received £3,000 in cash from Boufassil during a secret meeting at Small Heath Park in Birmingham in July 2015, the court heard.

Boufassil has admitted meeting Abrini in the park during the trial.

Boufassil, and accomplice Mohammed Ali Ahmed, a British national who pleaded guilty earlier, will be sentenced on Dec. 12.

At least 130 people were killed and hundreds were injured after a coordinated armed attack in the French capital on November 13, 2015.

On March 22, 2016, a suicide attack was carried out at Zaventem Airport and Maelbeek metro station in Brussels, killing 32 people and wounding 270 others.

Daesh claimed responsibility for both attacks and Mohamed Abrini has admitted his involvement in the bombing of Zaventem Airport.

He was pictured in CCTV footage walking alongside two bombers who later killed themselves in the attack and became known as “the man in the hat”.

Abrini confessed to being at the scene of crime adding that he threw his explosive vest in a bin and sold his hat after the blasts.