Sana Ahmed Khan: Wife of 'Silent Bomber' blames 'controlling' ex-husband as pair jailed over London terror plot

Rehman plotted what could have been the most deadly attack in Britain for 10 years, aided by his wife

Mohammed Rehman and his ex‑wife Sana Ahmed Khan, pictured, were found guilty of plotting an act of terror

The secret wife of a man who plotted a suicide attack in London to mark the 10th anniversary of the 2005 terror strikes blamed her “abusive and controlling” husband yesterday as she was jailed for life.

In a letter to the judge, Sana Ahmed Khan, 24, expressed remorse and claimed her judgment had been so clouded by drug use that she was unable to distance herself from her husband, Mohammed Rehman, 25, the self-styled “Silent Bomber”.

Rehman, jailed for a minimum of 27 years, plotted what could have been the most deadly attack in Britain for 10 years, aided by his wife. Khan said that she had divorced her husband a couple of weeks ago after finding out his “true character” during the trial.

But her pleas for clemency were rejected by a judge who said that the couple were both swayed by the ideology of Isis. Jailing her for a minimum of 25 years, Mr Justice Baker told Khan: “Once you had gained that mindset, I am satisfied that you too determined to fulfil the Islamic State’s call for jihad, by the carrying out of an act of terrorism within the United Kingdom.”

Rehman was inspired by the attacks on the London transport network on 7 July 2005, in which 52 people were killed and 770 injured; he described one of the bombers, Shehzad Tanweer, as his “beloved predecessor”. With money from Khan raised through payday loans, he bought chemicals on eBay to make a huge bomb at his family home in Reading. He filmed himself setting off a small explosion in his garden.

His plot was halted after an undercover officer spotted a tweet from Rehman asking Twitter users in May for suggestions on which target to choose: Westfield shopping centre or the Tube.

When police raided the house they found more than 10kg of urea nitrate, a highly explosive chemical, and enough for a catastrophic attack. In a police interview, Rehman admitted making and testing explosives but denied intending harm.

The couple lived with their respective families in Reading after marrying secretly in 2013. Neither had previously shown a strong interest in Islam, the court head. A jury found them guilty on 29 December of plotting an act of terrorism.