Storm is now thought to be in hiding, but attention is focusing on his life in Britain. He rented an area of woodland near Wetherby, West Yorkshire, where he intended to carry out training on behalf of his outdoor pursuits company. He conducted a couple of exploratory exercises there, but he disappeared without paying his rent last year.
Locals described him as a plausible figure who never revealed his Islamic faith. The website of his company, Storm Outdoors, refers to the founder's experience travelling in some of the world's "most hostile environments".
For much of his time in Britain, he lived in Luton, where he drew attention by proclaiming radical views at a time when community leaders were trying to keep a lid on extremism after the July 7 terror attacks. Storm also coached young Muslims to box, learned Arabic and described himself as a "holy warrior" helping recruit members for groups such as the now-banned al-Muhajiroun, it is claimed.
Farasat Latif of the Luton Islamic Centre said he found Storm to be "friendly and very jolly" but the pair rapidly fell out over his extreme views. "He first introduced himself as an ex-member of a biker gang and told me about his escapades. But he said he wanted to put all that behind him and become a good Muslim," he said.
But within six months Storm was accusing mosque leaders of apostasy - while spying for intelligence services.
"Morten Storm not only infiltrated extremist groups in Luton, he promoted them, helped them recruit members, and aided them in theologically refuting their opponents. In short, while he was doing the CIA's dirty work in Yemen, he gave religious extremism a huge boost in Luton," said Latif.
Community members were baffled that the father of two was able to afford to travel to Yemen.
Storm claims to have first met Awlaki in 2006 in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. The first plan was to plant a tracking device on the militant cleric. Their final meeting was at the home of a sympathiser in September that year, during which Morten claims Awlaki discussed plans for "poison attacks" on Western shopping centres.
When he returned to Copenhagen he met PET and the CIA who identified the house where they had met using satellite pictures. The premises were later destroyed by Yemeni security forces. In April last year Storm claims to have held another meeting with agents at a hotel in Helsingor, eastern Denmark where the plan to pass a USB stick to Awlaki was hatched.
Storm claims he was told his work had been recognised. A recording he made revealed a US official saying: "I'm talking about the President of the United States. He knows you. So the right people know your contribution. And we are grateful."
-Independent
