Toronto man pleads guilty in plot to supply Tamil Tigers

Mr. Sriskandarajah has appealed his extradition order to the Supreme Court of Canada together with Pratheepan Nadarajah, accused of attempting to buy $1-million worth of missiles and AK-47s for the rebels. Three other Canadians have already pleaded guilty to buying arms for the rebels in a related case. All originally from Sri Lanka, the six Canadians were arrested in 2006. At the time, separatist rebels known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or LTTE, were fighting for independence on the small island off the southern tip of India.

The charges alleged the Ontario men were part of an international rebel support network. “This network employed illegal methods to raise money, acquire weapons and technology, and publicize its cause, including arms dealing, human smuggling, sea piracy, narcotics trafficking and money laundering,” Ms. Lynch wrote.

The Sri Lankan civil war ended in May 2009 when the Tamil Tigers were defeated by government forces but the cases of the Canadians accused of aiding the rebels continue to make their way through the courts.

Mylvaganam pleaded guilty on Feb. 8 to a single count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He was tried in the U.S. because the offences occurred partly while he was working in Washington State.

Eleven friends and family have written to the judge asking for leniency. His brother Ragavan Kathiravetpillai said he hoped Mylvaganam would return home on May 4. “We pray to God every moment that this would come true. And I believe that my brother deserves a second chance.”

According to the letters, Mylvaganam shouldered responsibility for his family following the death of his father. He moved to Canada on his own at age 12 and studied at the University of Waterloo, where he was vice-president of the Tamil Students Association. He earned two graduate degrees and managed to save enough money to bring his mother and siblings to Canada.

“His life has been torn apart as a result of this case,” his lawyer wrote. “He simply wishes to be sent home as soon as possible so that he can start picking up the pieces of his shattered life and moving forward to make things right for himself, for his family, and for society at large.”

sbell@nationalpost.com

U.S. wants 15 years for Toronto man convicted in Tamil Tigers terror plot

Ramanan Mylvaganam pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He faces up to 15-year imprisonment.

The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking a 15-year prison sentence for a Canadian who pleaded guilty to terrorism conspiracy for his role in a plot to supply separatist rebels in Sri Lanka.

In a sentencing report filed in a Brooklyn, N.Y. court, U.S. attorney Loretta Lynch said Ramanan Mylvaganam had committed “a gravely serious offence” by attempting to procure equipment for the Tamil rebels.

“Any sentence other than a substantial sentence of incarceration risks undermining respect for the law by suggesting that a defendant can evade serious punishment for providing material support to a terrorist organization,” she wrote.

But the defence has asked the judge to sentence Mylvaganam to time served and release him, arguing the Sri Lankan civil war at the heart of the case was over and the Canadian was not a political zealot.

“This case represents the one, isolated transgression on his part,” his lawyer Jerry Fong wrote. “His failing in this case is one of judgment. However, Mr. Mylvaganam certainly has learned his lesson and is truly remorseful.”

His sentencing was scheduled for Friday.

Mylvaganam, 35, is accused of trying to buy night vision goggles for the Tigers and assisting Suresh Sriskandarajah, who had allegedly been asked by a senior rebel procurement agent to buy computer equipment, electronic components and communications equipment.

Ramanan Mylvaganam pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He faces up to 15-year imprisonment.The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking a 15-year prison sentence for a Canadian who pleaded guilty to terrorism conspiracy for his role in a plot to supply separatist rebels in Sri Lanka.

In a sentencing report filed in a Brooklyn, N.Y. court, U.S. attorney Loretta Lynch said Ramanan Mylvaganam had committed “a gravely serious offence” by attempting to procure equipment for the Tamil rebels.

“Any sentence other than a substantial sentence of incarceration risks undermining respect for the law by suggesting that a defendant can evade serious punishment for providing material support to a terrorist organization,” she wrote.

But the defence has asked the judge to sentence Mylvaganam to time served and release him, arguing the Sri Lankan civil war at the heart of the case was over and the Canadian was not a political zealot.

“This case represents the one, isolated transgression on his part,” his lawyer Jerry Fong wrote. “His failing in this case is one of judgment. However, Mr. Mylvaganam certainly has learned his lesson and is truly remorseful.”

His sentencing was scheduled for Friday.

Mylvaganam, 35, is accused of trying to buy night vision goggles for the Tigers and assisting Suresh Sriskandarajah, who had allegedly been asked by a senior rebel procurement agent to buy computer equipment, electronic components and communications equipment.