'I'm not stupid enough to reveal where I am': ISIS suspect from Walsall
A suspected ISIS terrorist from the Black Country who pleads his innocence says he won't reveal where he is living for fear he will be extradited back to Britain and be jailed.
Sajid Aslam, who is believed by MI5 and terror cops to be fighting for the so-called Islamic State, claims he is living in Turkey and working as a teacher.
In the most recent of a series of exchanges with the Express & Star, Mr Aslam says he is not 'stupid or reckless enough' to reveal his current location.
Asked to identify where he is, he replied: "I would say that although I am content with our continued contact and developing relationship, I am not yet ready to disclose my exact location and place of work.
"This is because I am sure that upon doing so, soon thereafter the Turkish authorities would extradite me back to the UK at the request of the British authorities – I am not stupid or reckless enough to put myself in such a vulnerable position."
MORE: 'I'm no terrorist so let my wife go,' says Walsall ISIS suspect
MORE: Friend or foe? Walsall ISIS suspect's picture evidence revealed
MORE: MI5 is setting me up' claims ISIS suspect who longs to see his Black Country family
Aslam is wanted by the British authorities for joining the terror group in Syria along with friends from a Walsall Muslim group.
His wife Lorna Moore was jailed for two-and-a-half years after she was convicted at the Old Bailey for concealing information about his plan to travel to Syria.
During Moore's trial, the Old Bailey was told that Aslam, of Glebe Street, Walsall, flew from Stansted Airport to Istanbul two years ago.
He then travelled to Gaziantep on the Turkish/Syrian border, meeting friends Jake Petty and Isaiah Siadatan and entering Syria to fight for ISIS, the court was told.
He contacted the Express & Star earlier this year and started a series of email exchanges.
In his latest reply, he states that he is suffering with an illness – which he says is further proof he could not be a terrorist.
He wrote: "Unfortunately I have been very sick, I suffer from hyperglycemia which at times leaves me extremely tired, weak, and bedbound until my blood sugar levels stabilise.
"Having thought about it, suffering from this condition is yet more proof that I cannot be an ISIS fighter, as running to catch a bus is difficult for me – let alone running around the war zones of Syria or Iraq."
In a previous email to this newspaper, Aslam said he travelled secretly to to the border because 'as a Muslim my religion compelled me to' help victims of the war.
He claims he left while his wife was on holiday in Mallorca as 'to not give her the chance to talk me out of travelling to a potentially dangerous region'.
Asked why he does not return home to clear his name, Aslam, who says he has contacted a human rights lawyer to help his case, says he does not want to join 'the list of British Muslims unjustly incarcerated'.
In the same email exchange, Aslam talks about missing Walsall, the town where he was born and grew up. He describes 'longing' for fish and chips from the town.
Around a dozen Muslims from Walsall either successfully joined ISIS in Syria or tried to do so in 2014.
Five men and two women from the town have been convicted of terrorism offences.
West Midlands Police say their investigation into Aslam continues.
