A suspected gang member is appealing to the Eastern High Court for release in a case involving a Hamas drone plot, which the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET) has been investigating for an extended period. The 28-year-old man is accused of involvement in a plan to purchase three drones intended for use by Hamas in an attack within Denmark or another country.
The accused denies violating the terrorism provision in the penal code. His defense attorney, Kåre Traberg Smidt, confirmed that the High Court granted an actual court hearing to address the imprisonment question, an unusual step as these matters are typically decided on written submissions.
The Court of Frederiksberg ruled on May 19 that the suspicion against the man was justified, leading to his continued custody. While oral hearings are usually only available after three months, exceptions are allowed for special reasons under the Administration of Justice Act. However, attorney Smidt declined to specify the reasons for the exception in this case.
The lawyer had previously stated that his client pleads “purely” not guilty and is keen to cooperate to clarify the situation. PET identifies the 28-year-old as a key figure in the banned gang Loyal To Familia, also alleging his connections to Hamas. He was a suspect during a joint operation by PET and several police districts in December 2023, but he was abroad at the time. After a year, he was extradited from Lebanon to Denmark due to a wanted notice related to a double murder at a Meny supermarket in Kalundborg in November 2020. He has been in custody since late December on this charge.
The PET case was introduced during a recent court hearing in Frederiksberg. The Copenhagen Police and PET publicly disclosed the core of the case for the first time since the action in December 2023. The gang figure is accused of participating in an order for three drones online, costing over a quarter of a million kroner. The drones were delivered to an address in Copenhagen on November 7, 2023, one month after the attack into Israel from Gaza by Hamas and other groups. The specific evidence against the 28-year-old and his explanation remain confidential.