Posted on 01/17/2005 1:50:05 AM PST by kattracks
Newly revealed evidence suggests the family slaughtered in their Jersey City home were victims of a robbery - though cops have not ruled out a more personal motive.Hossam Armanious, 47; his wife, Amal Garas, 37, and daughters Sylvia, 15, and Monica, 8, were bound, gagged and stabbed in the throat last week. Cops found them Friday after worried relatives hadn't seen them for days.
While the Egyptian Coptic Christian family was clearly robbed, police have not ruled out other possible motives. Friends of the family suspect the family may have been targeted for religious reasons.
And Channel 7 reported last night that a relative of the family had helped prosecutors in the case against Lynne Stewart, the lawyer charged with passing messages to followers of one of her clients, convicted terror kingpin Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman.
Prosecutors said yesterday the killer or killers appeared to have taken all the money from the house, except for a single penny found on the floor.
"The father's wallet had been emptied, and his pockets had been turned out," said First Assistant Hudson County Prosecutor Guy Gregory. "Even the daughter's pocketbook was turned out."
Some in the community believe the family was targeted because Armanious, a headwaiter at a New Jersey hotel, was active on a Web site where Copts and Muslims trade angry religious arguments.
"They're trying to make us afraid, make us keep our mouths shut," said Nadia Sourial, 55, a parishioner at St. George & St. Shenouda Coptic Orthodox Church.
Coptic community leaders announced a $100,000 reward for information leading to convictions in the murders. But church leaders and the victims' relatives tried to stop accusations yesterday during services.
"It's not time to make any speculations," said Bishop David, 37, a Coptic leader. "This is the time for the police."
The victims had crosses tattooed on their right wrists. But authorities said a cut near Sylvia's tattoo appeared to be a defensive wound, not a deliberate attack on the cross.
"I'm going through hell," said Garas' brother Ayman Garas, 35. "They were very peaceful. They had no enemies, were not involved with any problems."
Hundreds of people filled the church to hear the services in English and Arabic before 100 or so walked to the family's home on Oakland Ave. to pay respects to the slain.
"We do not have the proof, but the crime was committed in a certain way, the way Muslim fanatics kill people," said Monir Dawoud, spokesman for the American Coptic Association, who made a fiery speech during the memorial.
But some local Muslim leaders said Egyptian Christians and Muslims get along reasonably well in Jersey City. The leaders said they planned to attend the family's funeral today.
"I don't think this is religious at all," said Osama Hassan, director of the Islamic Center of Jersey City. "Maybe a few young Christian kids might have the wrong idea, but I think their leaders will set them straight."
Originally published on January 17, 2005
ping
>Is it possible the home was looted to mask the fact that this was a hate crime.<
More likely, the murderers simply felt entitled to the infidels' belongings.
I think you're right. At least about the police trying to keep a handle on local security situation. I'll bet the local community outrage is enormous.
News organizations can no longer realistically be believed.
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Both the deacon and uncle poured cold water on the theory that the family were the victims of a robbery gone wrong.
"This is not a robbery, Ayed said. "We found all of the jewelry in the house. They didn't take anything."
That's it.
They want us to be shielded from the truth.
And the truth is, ALL Muslims are terrorists.
Wacko NJ Cop Alert! Are these morons paid to act dumb, or just look that way!??
And please, no comments from NJ Cop families about how brilliant and dedicated they are. I lived in NJ for 15 years (not by choice I assure you!) and the cops were either crooked, sleeping behind a warehouse or eating donuts!
Yeah, clearly your typical straight B&E. The killings were just a gag!
Who are ya gonna believe? An eyewitness, or some state law enforcement types who have a vested interest in preventing people from knowing the truth.
ALL Muslims are terrorists.
I'd pay close attention to the Stewart/Rahman tie. That'd be number one on my list of things to follow up.
Sounds like officials are concerned about Muslim backlash; interesting how the story has changed.
A headless body found in NJ over the weekend? Was there a thread around here on that?
Imagine back in the day, before the internet, when they could get away with this crap.
Yes. I'll try to find it for you.
Thanks.
Here is the thread about the severed head in NJ:
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1322201/posts
Exactly. Now we send articles to our e-mail lists and they send them on. Stories reach a wider audience via internet than some MSM stories. They must hate that :-)
Steven Emerson's book detailed some individual murders by Muslims in the 90's that weren't covered extensively by the MSM. Most of the victims were Jewish.
And look at Van Gogh's murder in Holland. Frankly, I'm surprised we haven't seen more of this type thing but that could change so on as AQ realizes they aren't able to pull off a large scale operation in the US right now and frustration grows.
I can't even count the number of times I've read or heard, "Make it look like a robbery," in novels, true-crime books, movies, news articles, etc.
Yet it's beyond the deductive powers of the NJ cops to realize that personal and/or political murders are set up to look like something else...I'm not buying it.
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