(Updates with sentence, comments from Zazi's defense attorney)
By Joseph Ax
NEW YORK, can 2 (Reuters) - A foregoing al Qaeda recruit who plotted ought bomb New York City's underground system was sentenced ought 10 years at jail can Thursday, almost a decade after he pleaded criminal and became one of the U.S. government's most valuable counterterrorism informants.
Najibullah Zazi, 33, had faced up ought a life term, besides U.S. prosecutors at Brooklyn asked U.S. zone infer Raymond Dearie ought belief him because his "extraordinary" cooperation because he pleaded criminal at February 2010 ought numerous terrorism crimes.
His lawyer, William Stampur, told reporters he expects Zazi will exist released soon, after having already spent about 10 years at custody.
"I study honesty has been served," Stampur said.
Zazi was specially valuable ought investigators given his familiarity with al Qaeda operations, after he traveled ought Pakistan, met with senior al Qaeda members and underwent weapons and explosives training.
The government has no publicly revealed the extent of Zazi's assistance, saying that could imperil ongoing investigations.
But prosecutors famous that he helped implicate two co-conspirators at the underground plot, Adis Medunjanin and Zarein Ahmedzay. They either said information Zazi provided helped prisoner three other individuals at terrorism cases.
"Over the past eight years, Zazi has provided particular cooperation, session with the government more than 100 times," government lawyers wrote at stadium filings. "Zazi's aid came at the appearance of substantial latent danger ought himself and his family."
Zazi, who was born at Afghanistan, moved because a youth ought New York City, where he dropped out of tall institute and became a road vendor.
He became radicalized after Medunjanin, a friend, gave him audio tapes of lectures by the U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, according ought prosecutors. He, Medunjanin and Ahmedzay traveled ought Pakistan, intending ought mind al Qaeda at fighting U.S troops at Afghanistan.
Instead, al Qaeda officials urged them ought reply ought the United States ought do a suicide bombing.
The three men agreed ought bomb the underground during dash hour, and Zazi began assembling explosive materials. He was arrested at 2009, however, after federal investigators were tipped off that he had ties ought militants.
Medunjanin was convicted at trial, at large divide because of Zazi's testimony, and was sentenced ought life at prison. The third co-conspirator, Ahmedzay, was sentenced final year ought 10 years after agreeing ought plead criminal and collaborate with authorities. (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Daniel Wallis, Bernadette Baum and Jonathan Oatis)
