Benghazi Suspect Detention Hearing: Khatalla Denied Bail

The chief Benghazi suspect, accused of being the perpetrator of the 2012 attacks on a U.S. diplomatic mission, had a hearing today to determine whether he could be held without bail until his trial. Unsurprisingly, the judge ruled that the suspect would stay in custody.

Ahmed Abu Khatalla, who was captured in a raid last month, according to ABC7 News, is suspected of being a commanding force in the attacks, which occurred on the 11th anniversary of the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, and took the lives of four Americans.

His lawyer, a public defender, has done her job well by all accounts, arguing that she has seen nothing in the evidence currently filed to connect the suspect to the Benghazi attacks, but the judge sided with the prosecution this morning nonetheless, and ruled that Khatalla would remain incarcerated for the present.

This is the second time in less than a week that the suspect has appeared in cour. The first time was on Saturday, when he was transferred from a Naval vessel where he had the opportunity to answer to the charges. He plead not guilty in the Benghazi attacks, but officials say that statements the suspect has given, voluntarily, connect him to the attack.

The Wall Street Journal notes that, as yet, exactly what these statements are has not been released, which gives some credence to the claims of Khatalla’s attorney, Michelle Peterson, that no evidence has yet connected suspect to crime. However, federal prosecutors seem to have had no difficulty convincing the judge that there was no safe way to release the suspect before the trial.

Khatalla’s interrogators have assured officials that the statements do corroborate current evidence, though, and that the corroboration of key details is enough to prove that the suspect is guilty of voicing the command that led to four American deaths that night.

According to USA Today, Khattala was spotted near the site of the attacks shortly afterward speaking out against the consulate. The U.S. was already building a criminal case against him at that time.

However, before the attacks, it is notable that American officials thought of Khatalla as a low-level suspect, not a leader, and not someone likely to command an attack.

Khattalla himself said,

I am a Libyan citizen, and the American government has nothing to do with me. I am in my city, having a normal life and have no troubles, and if they have an inquiry to make, they should get in touch with Libyan authorities.

Denied bail, the Bhengazi suspect asked only to be provided with a Quran and a halal diet for his time in prison.