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Home Front: WoT

Mich. Prosecutor Dropping Terror Case

2006-08-17

BAY CITY, Mich. (AP) - Three Palestinian-American men who were found with nearly 1,000 cell phones were charged Wednesday with federal fraud conspiracy and money laundering after a county prosecutor backed off from terrorism charges filed earlier. Maruan Muhareb, 18; Adham Othman, 21; and Louai Othman, 23, all of the Dallas area, were charged in Bay City with conspiracy to defraud consumers and telephone providers by trafficking in counterfeit goods. They also were charged with money laundering on suspicion that they used proceeds from the counterfeit cell phone transactions to buy more phones. Magistrate Judge Charles Binder ordered the men held at least until a detention hearing Friday. They were arrested last Friday after buying dozens of cell phones at a Wal-Mart store in nearby Tuscola County. The three in Michigan had been charged there with collecting or providing materials for terrorist acts and surveillance of a vulnerable target for terrorist purposes. Prosecutor Mark E. Reene asked a judge Wednesday to dismiss those charges. Nabih Ayad, an attorney for the three men, called the charges ``outrageous'' and accused state and federal officials of ``scratching each other's backs'' by shifting jurisdictions. ``This is a clear indication of racial profiling: Picking someone up and holding them for days and trying to find something to charge them with. It's supposed to be the other way around,'' he said. Just sucks for your clients when the feds and the state coordinate the charges like that. The federal complaint contains no mention of terrorism. It alleges that the three men defrauded consumers, TracFone Wireless Inc. and Nokia Corp. Florida-based TracFone sells prepaid cell phones with a limited number of minutes at subsidized prices. It makes money when buyers purchase additional minutes. The government alleges the men are part of a scheme to buy up phones that Nokia makes for TracFone and then remove TracFone's proprietary software, enabling use of the handsets with any cellular provider. When the phones are altered, they are no longer genuine Nokia products. All the information in the federal complaint came from the defendants' statements to the FBI in interviews before they were charged in Tuscola County, Ayad said. Supporters of the Texas men say they were targeted because of their ethnicity. They say that the three were hoping to resell phones for a profit and that their purchases had nothing to do with terrorism. Which puts them in the position of admitting to the crime of defrauding the cell phone company, right? Photos the men took of the 5-mile-long Mackinac Bridge, which led to the surveillance charge, were tourist snapshots, advocates contend. "We're just simple elk hunters tourists!" The conspiracy charge is punishable by five years in prison. The men could face 20 years in prison if convicted of money laundering. Al Capone was convicted on tax evasion. Didn't matter in the end. Enjoy your stay in stir, boys.

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Home Front: WoT

Texas Terrs Targeting Mackinac Bridge

2006-08-14

CARO, Mich. — Three Texas men were arraigned Saturday on terrorism-related charges after police found about 1,000 cell phones in their minivan, and prosecutors say they believe the men were targeting a bridge connecting Michigan's Upper and Lower peninsulas. "All we did is buy the phones to sell and make money," Louai Abdelhamied Othman told the magistrate. He said authorities had previously stopped the group in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. "We've been checked by the FBI before," he said. "They even gave us their card and everything." And you kept buying up cell phones and planning missions ... Tuscola County Prosecutor Mark E. Reene told The Saginaw News that investigators believe the men were targeting the 5-mile long Mackinac Bridge. He declined to say what led investigators to that belief. What's wrong with the Golden Gate Bridge? It would be a much bigger headline and you would have a much better chance of beating the rap. Maybe less attention being paid to the Mac? GG gets a LOT of attention. Due to the location, it is constantly under painting and other maintenance -- they work their way from one end to the other and then start over in a 3? year cycle. Othman and Maruan Awad Muhareb, both of Mesquite, Texas, and Adham Abdelhamid Othman, of Dallas, were stopped before dawn Friday after they purchased 80 cell phones from a Wal-Mart in Caro. Police said they found about 1,000 cell phones in their minivan. Adham and Louai Othman are brothers and are in their early 20s. Muhareb, 18, is their cousin. All are being held at the Tuscola County Jail, Caro police said. Muhareb told the magistrate: "This is a misunderstanding." He said he was selling the phones to earn money to help pay for his brother's college education. I'm sure al-Q pays well, too. We probably ARE nabbing some guys in these sorts of arrests who are relatively innocent .... in their countries of origin the ahem informal economy is so prevalent that they would be likely not to see anything wrong with this even if they were innocent. Not that these guys seem to fit that profile. But even if they did, given the stakes, and the reality of terror threats, they're gonna have to learn the rules a lot quicker here.

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Home Front: WoT

3 Texas Men Arraigned on Terror Charges

2006-08-13

CARO, Mich. Three Texas men were arraigned Saturday on terrorism-related charges after police found about 1,000 cell phones in their minivan. A magistrate set bond at $750,000 for each of the men, who are charged with collecting or providing materials for terrorist acts and surveillance of a vulnerable target for terrorist purposes. Officials have declined to say how the case relates to terrorism. No pleas were entered at the arraignment at a District Court in Caro, about 80 miles north of Detroit. Maruan Awad Muhareb and Louai Abdelhamied Othman, both of Mesquite, Texas, and Adham Abdelhamid Othman, of Dallas, were stopped before dawn Friday after they purchased 80 cell phones from a Wal-Mart in Caro. Police said they found about 1,000 cell phones, mostly prepaid TracFones, in their minivan. The men cooperated with police and the FBI for hours before their arrests Friday afternoon. They said they intended to sell the phones in Texas for a profit. Authorities have said TracFones are often used by terrorists because they are not traceable. Cell phones can also be used to make detonators. Adham and Louai Othman are in their early 20s, and Muhareb is 18. All are being held at the Tuscola County Jail, Caro police said.

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