Feds say goal was Islamic nation in U.S.
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
After a 2-year investigation, FBI agents descended on a Dearborn warehouse Wednesday hoping to capture the suspected head of an Islamic fundamentalist group.
The scene quickly turned chaotic, however, in a shootout that caused agents to gun down Luqman Ameen Abdullah, 53, leader of the Masjid Al-Haqq mosque in Detroit. Abdullah is accused in a federal complaint of heading a Sunni Muslim group with the mission of establishing a separate Islamic nation within the United States.
Eleven other men were criminally charged in the raids, which also occurred in Detroit.
Abdullah, known to some as Christopher Thomas, died after firing on officers during the raid, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. An FBI dog also was fatally wounded.
The suspects "are members of a group that is alleged to have engaged in violent activity over a period of many years and known to be armed," a joint statement from the Detroit FBI and U.S. Attorney's Office said.
Abdullah and the others were charged with conspiracy to commit several federal felonies, including illegal possession and sale of firearms and theft from interstate shipments.
Three of the men charged were at large Wednesday night. The others are expected to appear in U.S. District Court in Detroit today for detention hearings.
Abdullah spoke of attacking Super Bowl XL
Abdullah believed he and his followers were soldiers at war against the government and non-Muslims......More
No comments:
Post a Comment