There is no suggestion that she knew of any criminal activity or terrorist affiliation. It is understood she knew him at college only.
US federal court filings identify Speitan as one of the “close friends” of Pham, a convicted member of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
The documents seen by the JC detail Speitan's friendship with the British-Vietnamese man, and also her willingness to testify in favour of his character.
Pham was arrested in the UK in June 2012 and extradited to the US in February 2015.
In 2016, he was sentenced by a US court to 44 years in prison.
He was found to have travelled to Yemen, where he received military training to carry out a suicide attack at Heathrow. British authorities searching him at the airport found Kalashnikov-related ammunition on his person.
He claimed to have bipolar disorder as part of his defence against charges of aiding the US-designated terrorist group.
Speitan was identified as one of those closest to Pham cited as offering a different picture of the convicted terrorist.
In a letter dated February 2016 and seen by the JC, Speitan wrote: “Minh really is one of the few people I regard with such high respect and esteem… he turned out to be one of the kindest, honest, most sincere, trustworthy and respectful people I have ever known.”
Appealing to the judge, she went on: “If only you truly knew the Minh that I and others grew to love and respect you would not help but to consider his case with great affection and understanding” and would have “the whole case dismissed”.
“He is and always will be considered a close friend. He is a simple and loyal man… we all miss him terribly. Not a day passes when he is not in our thoughts and hearts.”
Speitan was willing to provide testimony in Pham’s defence during his trial, but said her health did not permit travel, hence the letter.
Minh Quang Pham was arrested at Heathrow and convicted of plotting a suicide attack against the airport (US Department of Justice)[Missing Credit]
She told the judge: “He truly is one of the best men and I would rather endue the challenge of trying to support him than to sit and say or do nothing… it is with great pleasure that I share with you what I know of my dear friend Minh.”
Other court documents seen by the JC contain statements from Pham’s lawyers that Speitan would tell the court he was “passive” and wanted a “peaceful Muslim village”.
By then, Pham had already given FBI agents information incriminating himself. He pleaded guilty to terrorism charges.
The Green Party said: "Lubna holds no party positions other than being a member and any member can submit policy motions. The referenced court document does not suggest or evidence any illegality and is a decade old."
