Terrorism trial begins for former Canadian Idol contestant
Terror suspect Khurram Syed Sher leaves the Ottawa Courthouse after being granted bail in Ottawa on Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2010. More than three years after his arrest, Sher, who once auditioned for the Canadian Idol TV show, will face trial on a terrorism charge.
Photograph by: Sean Kilpatrick , THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA — Pathologist and one-time Canadian Idol contestant Dr. Khurram Syed Sher will be tried by a judge only.
Specifics of the alleged planned attack are likely to be revealed by federal Crown prosecutors at the outset of the trial, which the Crown tried — and failed — to have held in secret.
Because they will rely on overlapping evidence, prosecutors had argued that news media reporting of the Sher trial could prejudice the fair trial rights of the other two defendants.
Following interventions by the Citizen and CBC, who said the ban was excessive and unprecedented, a judge ruled the trial should be open but did ban news media from identifying Sher’s alleged co-conspirators, whose trial is expected to start in April.
The 29-year-old London, Ont., doctor, a father of three, has been living in Toronto under strict bail conditions.
Police say the arrest of Sher and his co-accused was the culmination of an 11-month undercover operation and allege it had prevented an imminent attack that had been a threat to the Ottawa area and “Canadian security.”
He was arrested less than a month after starting work as a pathologist at St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital near London, and charged with one count of conspiring to facilitate a terrorist activity.
“When I woke up and came to work this morning, this would have been way down my list of things that might have happened,” Paul Collins, president and CEO of the hospital told the Citizen at the time. “It was very surreal, actually, to hear. Nobody really saw this coming at all.”
After his arrest, a video of Sher’s failed 2008 Canadian Idol audition became a hot item on YouTube but while audio tracks remain, the video appears to have been blocked.
He appeared wearing a traditional Pakistani costume and hat, singing rendition of Avril Lavigne’s hit song Complicated.
“I came in 2K5,” he said in a Pakistani accent, “so it’s been about three years now.”
During the audition, Sher attempted a Michael Jackson-style moonwalk.
But according to colleagues who spoke anonymously to the media at the time of his arrest, Sher’s appearance was a spoof, noting that he was born in Montreal and had no accent.
Sher’s trial is scheduled to last a month. ccobb@ottawacitizen.com
Categories: Canada