This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk/8004360.stm
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| UK Tamil Tigers head found guilty | UK Tamil Tigers head found guilty |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| The head of the Tamil Tigers in the UK has been convicted of two terrorism charges at Kingston Crown Court. | The head of the Tamil Tigers in the UK has been convicted of two terrorism charges at Kingston Crown Court. |
| But the jury was discharged after failing to reach a verdict on three other charges against Arunachalam Chrishanthakumar, 52, of south London. | But the jury was discharged after failing to reach a verdict on three other charges against Arunachalam Chrishanthakumar, 52, of south London. |
| He was found guilty of supplying bomb-making equipment for the terrorist organisation and receiving documents for the purpose of terrorism. | |
| The Tamil Tigers became a banned organisation in the UK in 2000. | |
| The jury was also unable to reach a verdict on one charge against co-accused Jegatheeswaran Muraleetharan. | |
| 'Terrorist purpose' | |
| Mr Chrishanthakumar, known as Shantham, is a property valuer from Norbury, in south London, and the founder of the British Tamil Association. | |
| The court was told he had been warned by the UK authorities in 2004 after he bought boots and handcuffs for the Tigers' police force, the court heard. | |
| Prosecutors said that despite this, he continued supplying electrical components for the Tamil Tigers, including some which had "an obvious terrorist purpose". | |
| But the jury of five men and seven women was unable to reach a verdict on three other charges against him. | |
| The CPS will decide next week whether there will be a re-trial. | |
| The Tamil Tigers have waged an armed campaign for more than 30 years to try to create an independent Tamil state on the island of Sri Lanka. | |
| There are 300,000 Tamils living in the UK, half of them in London. |