The Stansted hi-jacking case ended in farce today

The Stansted hi-jacking case ended in farce when the man who bought the guns and took part in the hold-up walked free.

Khalil Ullah, 32, claimed he was unfit to stand trial because he was suffering from stress brought on by the crime.

And prosecutors today accepted there was no chance of a conviction after the rest of the Afghan gang were cleared by the Court of Appeal.

Beaming Ullah shook hands with the police and lawyers in court as he was released.

Nine others were jailed for a total of 27 years and three months in January 2001 after two trials spanning five months at a cost of more than pnds stlg 22 million.

All the gang admitted the hi-jack but claimed they were acting under duress.

They were cleared after the Court of Appeal found trial judge Sir Edwin Jowitt had made an error in law in his summing up which could have misdirected the jury.

Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee told the Old Bailey today Ullah had missed out on the trials because of his alleged ill health.

‘Mr Ullah generally suffers from migraine and post traumatic stress disorder with features of depression,’ he said.

Prosecution doctors argued Ullah could stand trial but the defence disagreed and it was accepted he was too ill to give evidence.

He has been given new drugs but doctors have not had a chance to assess how effective the medicatuion was becasue he kept taking his old pills, the court heard.

‘Time is requited to assess whether the new medication on will alleviate his condition,’ Mr Jafferjee said.

The barrister added the trial could not take place until the New Year – four years after the incident.

A new round of legal argument was due to take place
on whether Ullah was now fit.

But Mr Jafferjee said there was little chance of conviction after the Court of Appeal ruling.

The cleared men would have to give evidence on the basis they are innocent creating a minefield for barristers.

‘It is the prosecution view that owing to a combination of circumstances frankly beyond the control of the prosecution we are unable to agree that a third trial would be in the public interest,’ he said.

‘There would not be a realistic prosepect of a conviction.

‘The only proper and responsible way forward is to invite the court to order that the counts remain on file.

‘Sir Edwin said: ‘It seems to me the prosecution have taken a fair minded view of it and I propose to allow the indictment to lie on file.

‘In interview Ullah admitted going to Pakistan to buy the guns for the hi-jacking from outlaws.

He told police: ‘It was like going into the jaws of death.

‘The hi-jackers were arrested after a four day siege at Stansted Airport in Essex, the anti-Taliban gang threatened to murder 156 passengers including 21 children and blow up the Boeing 727 if they were refused entry.

The group took over the plane in Kabul and flew to London in a desperate attempt to escape war-torn Afghanistan in February 2000.

The accused hijackers claimed to be members of the pro-democracy group, The Young Intellectuals of Afghanistan.

They said they were fleeing the Taliban because they feared imminent arrest and execution.

Ali Safi, 35, Abdul Shohab, 21, Taimur Shah, 28, Muhammed Kazim, 27, Reshed Ahmodi, 23, Nazamuddin Mohammidy, 27, Abdul Ghayur, 24, Mohammed Showaib, 25, and Mohammed Safi, 33, were all jailed but had their convictions quashed.

And today Ullah was formally cleared on charges of hi-jack, false imprisonment, possession of firearms and possession of explosives.