‘Lackawanna Six’ Figure Sentenced

A 26-year-old man who prosecutors said led a group of American recruits to an Al Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan received a 10-year prison sentence Wednesday for supporting the terrorist organization.

Yahya Goba, who was born in the Bronx and spent part of his childhood in Yemen, knew before leaving Lackawanna, N.Y., for the Al Farooq camp near Kandahar that it was associated with Osama bin Laden, authorities said.

All the defendants in the “Lackawanna Six” case who attended the camp, where the use of explosives and weapons was taught, have pleaded guilty to single counts of providing support or resources to a dedicated foreign terrorist organization. Goba was the fourth to be sentenced.

Shafal Mosed, a 25-year-old American-born citizen, was sentenced Tuesday to eight years in prison. Mukhtar al-Bakri, a 23-year-old Yemeni American, and U.S.-born Yasein Taher, 25, were sentenced last week to 10 years and eight years, respectively.

According to his plea agreement, Goba -- like other members of the camp -- attended a speech before Sept. 11, 2001, in which Bin Laden said that Americans must be driven out of Saudi Arabia.

Government lawyers said the six men had given valuable information to the FBI and other federal agencies during extensive interrogations. Prosecutors said the highly sensitive intelligence included detailed information about Al Qaeda members and trainees, communication methods and measures to conceal identities while crossing international borders.

“This information has been used by the government to advance the goal of this country to prevent, investigate and prosecute further terrorist activities,” court papers said.