2012年10月10日星期三

California man linked to anti-Islam film denies violating probation

A California man linked to an anti-Islam film that stoked violent protests in the Muslim world denied on Wednesday that he had violated his probation on a bank fraud conviction, and he was sent back to jail until his case can be heard on its merits.

The man, who has been known publicly as Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, denied under oath in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that he committed eight probation violations, including lying to officials over the scope his role in the film and using aliases.

If he is found to have violated the terms of his supervised release from prison, the Egyptian-born Coptic Christian man whose legal name is Mark Basseley Youssef could be sent back to prison for two years.

A crudely made 13-minute video attributed to Youssef, 55, was made in California and circulated online under several titles including "Innocence of Muslims." The film portrays the Prophet Mohammad as a fool and sexual deviant.

It touched off a torrent of anti-American unrest in Arab and Muslim countries. That violence coincided with a separate attack on U.S. diplomatic facilities in Benghazi that killed four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.

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