U.S. judge sentences Vietnamese man to 40 years for al Qaeda affiliate support

A Vietnamese-born man who U.S. authorities say was instructed by a top figure with al Qaeda’s Yemen affiliate to carry out a suicide attack at London’s Heathrow Airport was sentenced on Friday to 40 years in prison.

Minh Quang Pham, 33, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan after pleading guilty in January to charges he provided material support to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

Nathan cited Pham’s renunciation of the militant group as a reason for not imposing a 50-year term sought by prosecutors. But she said he deserved more than the mandatory minimum 30 years due to his role in the “horrific” bomb plot.

“Given this, he must face a significantly severe sentence,” she said.