Millenium bomber sentenced to 22 years

SEATTLE, July 27 (UPI) -- The man accused of attempting a New Year's Eve attack on Los Angeles International Airport in 1999 was sentenced to 22 years in prison Wednesday.

Ahmed Ressam, also known as the "millennium bomber," was caught in Port Angeles, Wash., with a trunk full of explosives two weeks before the planned attack, as he crossed on a ferry from Canada.

He was charged with conspiracy to commit an international terrorist act and explosives smuggling, among other charges.

Ressam, who was born in Algeria and lived in Canada, admitted to planning the bombing and was cooperating with prosecutors to convict co-conspirators, but stopped assisting earlier this year.

Prosecutors said that could damage their case against Abu Doha and Samir Ait Mohamed and urged federal Judge John Coughenour to sentence Ressam to 35 years.

Coughenour said Ressam's earlier cooperation merited the 22-year sentence, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported.