By Canadian Press

Sentencing arguments in Amanda Lindhout kidnapping case set for March

Jan 5, 2018 | 11:15 AM

OTTAWA — Sentencing arguments are slated for March 22 in the case of a Somalian man found guilty in the kidnapping of Amanda Lindhout.

The one-day hearing will help Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Smith decide a sentence for Ali Omar Ader, who faces up to life in prison.

Smith ruled in December that Ader, a 40-year-old Somalian national, was a “willing participant” in the 2008 hostage-taking of Lindhout, who was working as a freelance journalist near Mogadishu at the time.

The judge found much of Ader’s testimony was unbelievable and did not support his claim that he was forced into serving as a negotiator and translator on behalf of a gang who threatened to harm him and his family.

Lindhout, raised in Red Deer, Alta., and photographer Nigel Brennan of Australia were snatched by armed men while pursuing a story, the beginning of 15 months in captivity.

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The RCMP lured Ader to Canada on the pretext of signing a lucrative book-publishing deal, leading to his arrest in Ottawa in June 2015.

— Follow @JimBronskill on Twitter

The Canadian Press