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The Canadian Press

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CHICAGO - A Canadian is one of two Chicago men charged with plotting terrorist attacks against targets outside the United States, including a Danish newspaper that sparked outrage among Muslims by publishing cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.

A statement released Tuesday through the Department of Justice outlines the allegations against the two men.

Prosecutors said Canadian citizen Tahawwur Hussain Rana, 48, and David Coleman Headley, 49, have been charged in separate complaints filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago.

Headley and Rana are each charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorism conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

Headley is also charged with conspiracy to commit terrorist acts involving murder and maiming outside the United States.

He could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.

According to an FBI affidavit released Tuesday, Headley told FBI agents that the initial plan called for an attack against the newspaper building in Copenhagen, but he later proposed just killing the paper's cartoonist and former cultural editor.

Prosecutors said Headley, a U.S. citizen who changed his name from Daood Gilani in 2006, identified and conducted surveillance of potential targets of a terrorist attack in Denmark on two separate trips to that country in January and June.

They said Headley reported and attempted to report on his efforts to individuals with ties to terrorism overseas, including at least one with links to al-Qaida.

U.S. federal officials say Rana is a native of Pakistan and citizen of Canada who primarily resides in Chicago.

The complaint against Rana alleges he made travel arrangements for Headley under the auspices of the business he runs, First World Immigration Services, which has offices in Chicago, New York and Toronto.

An employee reached at the Toronto office denied any knowledge of Rana and offered no comment on his arrest.

Rana's lawyer, Patrick Blegen, said his client "is a well respected businessman in the Chicagoland community."