Courts

Lisa Smith found guilty of Isis membership

Former Defence Forces member was first person to be prosecuted here for membership of terrorist group acting outside the State

Lisa Smith pictured at the Special Criminal Court in Dublin. Photograph: Collins Courts

Eoin Reynolds
Mon May 30 2022 - 11:13

Lisa Smith has been released on bail having been found guilty of membership of the Islamic State terror group Isis in a judgment of the Special Criminal Court.

Smith, a mother-of-one, cried as Mr Justice Tony Hunt revealed the verdict of the three-judge, non-jury court and was comforted by her legal team.

Despite objections from gardaí, Mr Justice Hunt agreed to allow Smith to remain on bail until her sentencing hearing on July 11th.

Mr Justice Hunt spent 90 minutes on Monday returning the court’s judgement. He rejected Smith’s claims that she had gone to the Islamic State simply out of a sense of religious obligation and for the innocent purpose of living under Sharia law and raising a family in a Muslim state.

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The judge noted that religion is “irrelevant to membership of Isis” as criminal activity cannot be justified by religious obligation. He said that a person would not gain immunity for arson, assault or murder because he believed he had a religious obligation to persecute witches.

The court found Smith not guilty of a second charge of funding terrorism, saying that it is reasonably possible that she sent €800 to Isis fighter and propagandist John Georgelas in May 2015 for his personal use or for “humanitarian reasons”, after he had been injured during fighting in Syria.

Mr Justice Hunt then went through the evidence relating to membership and said the prosecution had established beyond reasonable doubt that Smith travelled to Syria with her “eyes wide open” and pledged allegiance to the organisation led by terrorist leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

[ Full story of the Lisa Smith trial: How did a member of Irish Defence Forces end up a member of Isis? ]

[ Lisa Smith warned family to become Muslims before it was too late, court hears ]

[ Trial of Lisa Smith ends at Special Criminal Court ]

He said that her reasons for going to Syria were “grounded in allegiance to or agreement with the views espoused by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi”. He said there was no “benign” explanation for her travel and no alternative Islamic State that she could have been traveling to. He rejected claims that she was naive or unaware of what Isis was doing, and said she “knew full well she was not simply adhering to life under Sharia law”.

Smith, from Dundalk, Co Louth had pleaded not guilty to membership of an unlawful terrorist group, Islamic State, between October 28th, 2015 and December 1st, 2019. She also pleaded not guilty to financing terrorism by sending €800 in assistance, via a Western Union money transfer, to a named man on May 6th, 2015.

She denied that she went to join a terrorist organisation. The prosecution alleged that by travelling in answer to a call by al-Baghdadi for all Muslims to come to Syria, Smith joined a terrorist organisation.

It said people like Smith were the “life blood” of Isis and critical to its mission to spread its version of Islam by violence and murder.

Mr Justice Hunt said the court accepts that Isis is a terrorist organisation that controlled parts of Syria and Iraq when Smith decided to travel to its territory in late 2015. He said social media messages between Smith and various Isis hardliners, including Georgelas, supported the prosecution’s assertion that she knew what Isis was doing and supported its aims.

After delivering the verdict, Mr Justice Hunt said he was satisfied that Smith has been on bail for more than two years and has complied with all requirements. He extended her bail ahead of sentencing on July 11th.

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