By Neveen A. Salem

WASHINGTON, March 29 (IslamOnline) – American Muslim organizations reported Thursday that sealed information, about the raid on American Muslim businesses and individuals, may have been leaked to John J. Loftus, former prosecutor in the Justice Department's Nazi War Crimes Unit.

It has been reported that Mr. Loftus contacted members of the media and told them of the upcoming raids before they occurred to assure that the media would cover them, turning the raids into a virtual media circus, further humiliating the American Muslim community.

In a meeting held Thursday on Capitol Hill at Congressman Frank Wolf's (R-VA) office, Mahdi Bray, political director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), asked Dean Boyd of the Department of the Treasury's United States Customs Service, how it was that some members of the media were actually present at raids that were supposed to be secret. Boyd informed both Bray and Congressman Wolf that they did not contact the media about the North Virginia raids because information pertaining to these raids were under seal.

However, Boyd publicly confirmed suspicions that Loftus leaked the story of the raids on American Muslim organizations and individuals to the media. Bray then questioned the legality of leaking sealed federal information to a former Justice Department employee. Bray commented, "It is my understanding that law enforcement initiatives under seal are not even privy to other members of law enforcement who are not directly connected to the investigation of that particular case. How could Mr. Loftus have received this highly sensitive information without someone within law enforcement breaking the law?"

Loftus is on record as defending Jonathan Pollard, the American spy serving a life prison sentence for spying for Israel, and has accused President George W. Bush and his family of acquiring their wealth directly from the Nazi party and the Third Reich, MPAC relayed in a statement.

Also present at the meeting with Congressman Wolf were representatives from the American Muslim Council (AMC), the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Nicole Nason, Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Congressional Affairs at the United States Customs Department, and individuals whose homes and offices were raided by federal officials.

The meeting, which was called by the American Muslim organizations, came after Wolf held two separate town hall meetings with American Muslims last week and told them that he is open to addressing their concerns.

“What Frank Wolf did was recognize the community’s deep concerns,” Ray Busch, government relations director for the American Muslim Council (AMC), told IslamOnline.

Bush also relayed that Wolf respected their call for the meeting, which lasted almost a full hour, and also arranged for members from the U.S. Department of Treasury and Customs to be present at the meeting.

The witnesses that also attended the meeting explained what happened to them, including government searches on areas where other people and organizations have separate operations that were not described in the search warrants.

“They [the witnesses] also relayed that they were handcuffed and intimidated and that comments were made that are unprofessional and unbecoming of law-enforcement,” Busch continued.

IslamOnline was told that the Wolf and the other officials were receptive to the concerns of the community and stated that they would thoroughly look into what happened during the raids.

Busch, who was designated to be the Treasury and Customs Department’s liaison to the community, asserted that the government needs to thoroughly investigate both the reasons for, as well as the procedures that were undertaken surrounding the raids.

“I hope the Treasury Department will investigate thoroughly. There is such a thing as accountability in our government and we hope to see that here,” he stated.

In reference to the fact that the organizations, two of which are schools, have had all of their computers confiscated, thus hindering their ability to function Busch said, “I also requested for computers and copies of documents be returned as soon as possible to the raided institutions and individuals to ensure to the community that the confiscation of these documents will not culminate in an end to the everyday operations of the organizations, and to ensure a return to normalcy,” Bush concluded.

MPAC also hand delivered a letter to Congressman Wolf asking for a congressional investigation into the misconduct of officials as they conducted these raids last week. Wolf responded that he would contact the commissioner of U.S. Customs concerning this matter and will respond to MPAC's insistence on an investigation and full disclosure of the circumstances surrounding the raids.

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Terbitan : 30 Mac 2002

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