I just assumed he must be a stockbroker! ;-)
Mich. Suspect May Have al-Qaida Info
By ALEXANDRA R. MOSES=
Associated Press Writer=
DETROIT (AP) An Arab-American charged with smuggling $12 million in bogus cashiers checks into the United States told agents that the man named on the checks may belong to al-Qaida, authorities said Wednesday.
Omar Shishani, 47, also told investigators that he can provide them with information on terrorism, Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Straus said during a hearing.
Defense attorney Nabih Ayad said his client never made such statements and family members in Jordan said Shishani was simply a wealthy computer salesman.
Shishani was arrested last week after arriving at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on a flight from Indonesia. He was jailed without bond Wednesday after pleading innocent to possession of counterfeit securities and smuggling merchandise into the United States. He faces up to 15 years in prison.
Shishani was asked about terrorism during an interview with federal agents. According to Straus, he answered: ``If you want to know about terrorism, I can help you with that.''
Authorities say they found nine phony cashiers checks during a search of Shishani's bags. Six were dated June 10, 2002, and made payable to ``Baharuddin Masse,'' according to the indictment. The other checks were dated Sept. 3, Sept. 5 and Sept. 6, 2002.
Shishani told agents he believes Masse may belong to al-Qaida, has made pro-al-Qaida statements and named his daughter al-Qaida, Straus said. The suspect's attorney said he only said the part about the girl.
Two of the checks were for $5 million each; two were for $500,000 each; and five were for $200,000 each, the affidavit said. The checks, labeled ``cashier check,'' were purportedly issued by the Pomona, Calif., branch of West America Bank.
There is no Pomona branch and the checks were labeled incorrectly, Secret Service agent Clarence T. Laster said in the affidavit. Several people have been arrested in the Las Vegas area for passing similar checks, Laster said.
Authorities have searched Shishani's home in nearby Dearborn, but the results of the search were sealed.
Shishani was born in Jordan. He emigrated to the United States 20 years ago, where he married. He holds both the Jordanian and American passports, and his lawyer described him as a broker.
Shishani's brother, Ali, said he had little information on the checks other than they were given to his brother in Indonesia, to which Omar Shishani often travels on business.
``My brother didn't break any laws,'' Ali Shishani said from Amman, Jordan. ``The checks were in his pocket, but he didn't use them or try to cash them.''
Ahmad Shishani, another of Shishani's brothers in Jordan, said Omar Shishani has ``absolutely no links at all with any terrorist group or al-Qaida'' and that his brother is a wealthy computer salesman who travels often.