THE trial of a British man accused of links to Somalia’s militant group, Al-Shabaab and allegedly planning a bomb attack in Kenya, begun in the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa on Thursday.The first witness told the court that the 29-year-old Jermaine Jhon Grant who was arrested in December 2011, denied allegations that he possessed explosive materials. The British Muslim allegedly paid 360 U.S. dollars as dowry and got married to a Kenyan, barely two weeks after they met.Hassan Mohammed, a resident who told the court that he met Grant in a Kibokoni mosque where the two of them prayed before they became friends also said he arranged for the suspect to meet the would-be wife at their home in Mwandoni in the presence of her brother.While testifying in a case in which Grant faces several counts of being in possession of explosives, Mohammed said when they met at Memon Mosque last November, he told him that his names were Ali Mohammed Ibrahim, and was dealing with sale of vehicles and had a degree in Business Administration. “We used to take coffee together, and he told me he is Canadian. When I asked him what he does for a living, he said its business of importing cars. He also said that he was living with friends, “ said Mohammed. Mohammed also informed the court that his “friend” confided in him how he was interested in Mombasa, and wanted to get a future partner (wife), after which the hunt for a suitor begun. “I took him to Kisauni to go and see single ladies. First, I took him to my sister’s daughter but he didn’t like her, then I took him to a second one, who is my late sister’s daughter but he never liked her too. He then pointed to another house and I took him there, where we met a woman and her brother, and we informed him of our intentions to get a wife,” he added. The witness told the court that everything was agreed upon and dowry negotiations set on course, after which the brother demanded 1, 200 dollars which was later reduced by 240 dollars and then they finally settled on 600 dollars after Grant claimed he didn’t have the initial dowry quoted.
