The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Thursday, January 10, 2013 - 7A British man sentenced for attempted missile sale Businessman tried to sell U.S. weapon parts to Iran EL PASO, Texas (AP) - A federal judge sentenced a Brit- ish businessman to nearly three years in prison Wednesday for trying to buy surface-to-air missile parts from undercover U.S. agents to resell to Iran. Christopher Tappin, 66, pleaded guilty in November to aiding and abetting to export defense materials in a deal that opened the door for him to serve part of his sentence in Britain near his ailing wife. U.S. District Judge David Brio- nes in El Paso said Wednesday that he would recommend that the U.S. Department of Justice approve any request by Tappin to be transferred to the United Kingdom. Tappin read a brief statement during the sentencing hearing in which he apologized for the crime. "I regret my actions and the impact they had on my family," he said. "I am looking forward to putting this incident behind me and returning to my previ- ous unblemished life and my wife." As part of the plea deal, pros- ecutors agreed not to oppose any request by Tappin to serve part of his 33-month sentence in Britain. Along with approval from the Department of Jus- tice, Tappin also needs approval from the British government to serve time in one of its prisons. In 2006, Tappin associ- ate Robert Gibson contacted a company set up by undercover U.S. agents to buy batteries for surface-to-air missiles. U.S. authorities alleged Tappin pro- vided undercover agents with false documents to deceive authorities and circumvent the requirement for the batteries to be licensed by the U.S. govern- ment before being exported. "We hope this sends a mes- sage to people that are selling defense materials that we moni- tor sales and shipments, and that we are watching," federal prosecutor Greg McDonald said Wednesday. The judge dismissed charges of conspiracy to illegally export defense articles and conspira- cy to conduct illegal financial transactions. Tappin must also pay an $11,357 fine, the amount he would have profited from the sale. Tappin must report to prison by March 8. His lawyers asked that he be allowed to report to a Pennsylvania prison, something the judge said he did not oppose. Tappin will likely spend six to nine months in the United States before being sent back to Britain,. Tappin's attorney, Dan Cogdell, said. There, he will serve no more than half of the remaining sentence, Cogdell said. "I look forward to returning home to be near my friends and family, and especially my sick wife," Tappin said afterward. Tappin fought extradition to the' United States for two years until being denied a peti- tion to take the case to Britain's Supreme Court. His extradition touched a nerve in Britain among those who believe extradition arrangements with the United States are unfairly weighted against British citizens. After he was brought to Texas in February, Tappin was held at the Otero County Jail for about two months, where he initially was put in solitary confinement at his request. Tappin was later released on bond in April and has since lived near his lawyer's house in a gated community in Houston. Gibson, another British national, pleaded guilty in April 2007 and was sentenced to 24 months in prison. An Oregon man, Robert Caldwell, was found guilty in July of that year and received a 30-month sentence. ROSS D. FRANtLIN/AP Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio speaks with the media talking about the Sheriff's new program providing security around schools in his jurisdiction, at Anthem Elementary School. rme olunteers to atrol 59 schools in Arizona As many as 500 Volunteers to guard areas near schools PHOENIX (AP) - The sher- iff for metropolitan Phoenix has launched a plan to have as many as 500 armed volunteers patrol areas just outside schools in an effort to guard against shootings like month's attack at a Connecti- cut elementary school that left 26 people'dead. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office said Wednesday that the patrols were launched earlier this week at 59 schools in unincorporated areas and com- munities that pay his agency for police services. Arpaio hopes to have as many as 400 posse volunteers and another 100 volunteers known as reserve deputies take part in the patrols. The plan from the sheriff known for immigration enforce- ment and housing jail inmates in canvas tents has led some long- time critics to say Arpaio's latest effort is meant to grab headlines and won't be sustained over the long term. "Why would people complain about my posse being in front of schools to act as prevention?" Arpaio asked, noting that he wants the patrols to last through- out the remainder of the school year. The sheriff said school shoot- ings in Connecticut and else- where and last month's arrest of an Arizona student accused of planning an attack at her high school led to his decision to launch the patrols. The volunteers, dressed in uniforms and driving patrol vehicles, won't go onto school grounds unless they spot danger and won't sit in stationary spots. Instead, they'll patrol several schools as part of their driving routes. Andrew Sanchez, a town council member in Guadalupe, said he doesn't want the sheriff's posse members patrolling outside schools in his town. The commu- nity of about 6,000 spends $1.2 million a year to have Arpaio's office provide police protection. "We are paying him to have certified deputies here, not to bring a circus and not to use our town as a political platform," Sanchez said. He predicted the volunteer patrols would disappear once media attention had faded. Distrust of Arpaio in Guada- lupe runs deep after the sheriff's deputies poured into the town during one of his first trademark immigration sweeps in April 2008. During the crackdowns, depu- ties surge into an area of a city - in some cases, heavily Latino areas - to seek out traffic viola- tors and arrest other offenders over several days. Arpaio announced his plans Wednesday on the grounds of an elementary school, saying he wants the patrols publicized. "I want everyone to know aboutit for the deterrence effect," he said. The announcement came on the same day that the tbp Demo- crat in the Arizona House put forth a proposal to triple funding for school resource officers, add money for mental health treat- ment and require background checksonallbuyers atgunshows. Arpaio said no taxpayer money would be spent on the patrols and volunteers will be supervised by radio or phone by deputies. Joselyn Wells, the mother of three children at a school in suburban Anthem, where Arpa- io's posse members have begun patrolling, said she was excited to hear about the initiative. "A lot of people sit around and watch these things happen, watch key signs and no one wants to do anything about it," she said. "Nobody wants conflict, nobody wants to be out in the limelight. And he doesn't care. He wants to do the right thing." Arpaio has relied heavily on his posse, which consist of about 3,000 unpaid civilians, including action-film star Steven Seagal. They assist deputies in duties such as providing free police pro- tection at malls during the holi- days, directing traffic at wreck scenes and transporting to jail the people who are arrested in immigration patrols. One group of posse members conducted an examination into the authentic- ity of President Barack Obama's birth certificate. Members wear uniforms and can get authorized to carry a gun after fraining, though only 400 can actually carry guns. They can make arrests only at the direction of a deputy sheriff. Posse operations generally don't receive taxpayer money -and instead are funded through con- tributions and dues paidby posse members. The reserve deputies who will join posse members in the school patrols have all the training and powers of a regular law enforce- ment officer but aren't paid for their police work. Monica Allread, spokeswom- an for the Tempe Elementary School District, which includes an elementary school in Guada- lupe, shied away from comment- ing on Arpaio's new plan. But she said the district aims to improve safety at its schools. Egyptian party elects leader after months of infighting' Salafi Al-Nour party sets sights on winning seats in parliament CAIRO (AP) - Egypt's larg- est ultraconservative Islamist party, which has emerged as a potent political force in the country, elected a new leader Wednesday after the previous head broke away to form his own political group following months of infighting. Younis Makhyoun, a 58-year- old cleric and trained dentist, was selected in a consensus vote to lead the Salafi Al-Nour party, one of several religion- based parties to take root after the 201 Egyptian uprising. His election marks the consolida- tion of power within the party of the religious clerics who co- founded Al-Nour and success- fully faced down a challenge to separate the group's political and religious leadership. The infighting could cost the Salafis in upcoming parliamen- tary elections as they compete with fellow Islamists for seats in the legislature and try to shape Egypt's future in a politi- cal struggle with secular-mind- ed political groups. Egyptian President Moham- med Morsi is expected to set a date soon for the elections. His spokesman, Yasser Ali, told reporters Wednesday that preparations for the vote would begin Feb. 25. In taking the reins of the party, Makhyoun immediately turned his sights Wednesday to the elections. He described the next parliament as "the most dangerous and the most impor- tant" in Egypt's history because its mission will be "to purify all laws from whatever violates Shariah," or Islamic law. Makhyoun was a member of the Islamist-dominated con- stituent assembly that wrote Egypt's new constitution. The document deeply polarized Egyptians and sparked deadly street protests, but passed by a 64 percent "yes" vote in a ref- erendum in which around 33 percent of voters participated. Islamists perceive the consti- tution as the first step toward redefining Egypt's identity to conform to Islamic law.. "We want to liberate Egypt from slavery and submission," Makhyoun said Wednesday, while also trying to assuage fears of women and Christians by saying Shariah would "liber- ate even Western women from the West's moral decay." Al-Nour was founded by a group of influential hardline Salafi clerics shortly after the 2011 Egyptian uprising that toppled longtime strongman Hosni Mubarak. Their single- minded dedication to apply- ing Islamic law sets them apart from Egypt's strongest Islamist force, the Muslim Brotherhood, which shares many of the Salafi fundamen- talist beliefs but also has a his- tory of political pragmatism to achieve its ends. Salafis follow the Wahhabi school of thought, which pre- dominates in SaudiArabia. They promote a strict interpretation of Islamic law which mandates segregation of the sexes, bans banks from charging interest and punishes theft by cutting off thieves' hands. Pakistani NATO suppliers on strike in light of poor conditions Troops in Afghanistan now use longer, more expensive route PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) - Truckers who carry supplies to NATO troops in Afghanistan have gone on strike in northwest Pakistan to protest lower pay, inadequate security and cor- rupt officials who demand bribes from the truckers, officials said Wednesday. The supply route is an impor- tant lifeline for international forces in landlocked Afghanistan. The coalition ships a significant portion of its nonlethal supplies through Pakistan into south- ern Afghanistan. The other land route into Afghanistan through Central Asia and Russia is longer and more expensive. The strike began in response to the government's decision to require truckers to go through authorized companies to carry NATO supplies instead of making individual deals with the govern- ment-run National Logistics Cell, said Jehanzeb Khan, head of a transport workers union in north- west Pakistan. The companies pay the truckers less, said Khan. He also claimed the govern- ment was not providing adequate protection to the drivers from Taliban attacks, and each truck had to pay corrupt security offi- cials about $165 in bribes to pass through the Khyber tribal area on the way to the border. Khan said truckers in north- west Pakistan stopped carrying NATO supplies Wednesday, and he was reaching out to others throughout the country to get them to join the strike. Haneef Khan Marwat, head of a transportation company in the southern city of Karachi, said some truckers began their strike as early as Jan. 4 and thousands of vehicles are involved. He said the strike would continue until the government reversed its new policy. No trucks carrying NATO supplies crossed the northwest Torkham border on Wednesday, said local political official Tahir Khan. Torkham is one of two cross- ings used to ship NATO supplies to Afghanistan. Goods continued to move through the other crossing, Cha- man, in southwest Pakistan, said clearing agent Mohammed Asghar. Pakistan closed its Afghan border to NATO supplies for seven months in response to U.S. airstrikes that accidentally killed 24 Pakistani soldiers in November 2011. Pakistan finally reopened the route after the U.S. apologized for the deaths. Also Wednesday, police said they arrested five Pakistani Taliban militants involved in the killing of two female polio work- ers in the southern city of Kara- chi in December. Senior police official Ghulam Shabbir Shaikh told reporters that the five mili- tants are from the northwest Swat Valley and confessed to their participation in the killings, saying they believed the polio vaccine was meant to make Mus- lim children sterile.