France capture Norse “Terror Financier”

Paris Charles de Gaulle AirportIllustration: Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport

French newspaper Le Monde reports that May 2nd, Jacob Wærness,a Norse man formerly employed by the Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) was arrested in Paris and charged with illegally financing terrorism.

 

Jacob Wærness was arrested during a stop-over at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport and will face charges before French courts today, May 11th.

Norwegian Broadcasting Corp. (NRK) first reported the story within Norway.

Wærness is 1 of 8 suspected of financially supporting terrorism through the French company Lafarge: a cement factory doing business in Syria. Lafarge is accused of paying IS to continue doing Syrian business.

From 2011 to 2013, Wærness was security chief in Syria for LaFarge.

After the Syrian government military withdrew from the area in 2011, Lafarge came into contact with various militant revolutionary terror groups including IS.

2016 BOOK
The investigation of Lafarge began June, 2016 after Norwegian Jacob Wærness published a 2016 book revealing French company Lafarge gave money to Syrian militants.Wærness was interviewed several times and repeated those claims.

French investigators repeatedly tried to question Wærness (now in Switzerland) but he refused to travel to France; suggesting instead that investigators should come to Switzerland or that perhaps he could answer police questions via a Skype internet-video connection.

SPEAKS ARABIC
Frustrated with their thwarted investigation, French authorities decided to arrest Wærness May 2nd during an airline stopover in Paris. Aftenposten was unable to contact Wærness, May 10th.

Wærness speaks Arabic and is accused of having been in contact with leaders of various combat groups within Syria.

Speaking with NRK late 2017, Wærness gave comment of his involvement in Syria, saying; “I never paid money to these (terror) groups directly. When I did pay money (for Lafarge), it was to FSA (Syrian Free Army rebels) as a ransom payment used to free hostages.”

TERROR FACTIONS
In an interview with A Magazine, Wærness stated that money was also paid by Lafarge to IS before the group was re-classified as a terror organization.IS required Lafarge to pay “taxes & fees” for “protection.”

French daily Le Monde reported in June, 2016 that French cement maker Lafarge entered plans with Syrian terror factions, including the Islamic State group IS to assure Syrian interests.

Lafarge is a world leader in production of construction materials.

Syria’s Assad regime considers Norwegian Jacob Wærness a wanted criminal subject to immediate arrest upon Syrian soil.

 

© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today