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Posted on 02/28/2002 2:47:38 PM PST by Shermy
Five New York City men with ties to the Middle East were indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday for their part in an alleged scheme to fraudulently obtain Tennessee driver's licenses.
In the indictment on one count of conspiracy to commit fraud, federal authorities shed no new light on the death of state license examiner Katherine Smith. Smith and the five men were charged in a Feb. 6 criminal complaint on an identical conspiracy charge.
Smith died Feb. 10 in a fiery car crash on U.S. 72 in Fayette County, the day before she was to appear at a detention hearing in U.S. Magistrate Court. Federal authorities have testified that the fire in the car was set.
Federal prosecutor Tim DiScenza declined comment Wednesday when asked about any developments in the probe of Smith's death or why the licenses were sought.
The indictment names the five defendants, Smith and "others, to the grand jury unknown" as part of the conspiracy. All five remain in custody.
The indictment gave this information about the alleged scheme:
Sakhera Hammad "would solicit individuals to come to Memphis . . . in order to obtain driver's licenses without proper documentation."
Hammad would then pay Khaled Odtllah, who lived in Shelby County, "in order for Odtllah to arrange with Katherine Smith" to issue the fraudulent licenses.
Hammad's cousin, Abdelmuhsen Mahmid Hammad, got a Tennessee license through Odtllah and Smith on Aug. 16, according to the indictment.
Sakhera Hammad obtained a fraudulent Tennessee license Oct. 8.
Abdelmuhsen Mahmid Hammad allegedly drove co-defendants Mohammed Fares, Mostafa Said Abou-Shahin and a juvenile to Memphis from New York Feb. 5 to get more licenses - one in Fares's name and three in names that prosecutors have said appear to be aliases.
FBI agents and Tennessee Highway Patrol investigators were tipped to the journey by an FBI agent in New York. [-- Very interesting... Good job FBI! --]
They set up surveillance outside the Summer Avenue testing station where Smith worked, according to an earlier FBI affidavit. When the group from New York left the station, the members and Smith were arrested.
Juvenile Court officials have since identified the juvenile as Ammar Khayata, 16. He is not charged but is being held by Juvenile Court officials at the request of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the officials said.
- Bill Dries: 529-2643
dries@gomemphis.com
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