Posted on 05/03/2003 4:02:22 AM PDT by sarcasm
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- A federal grand jury has indicted seven people from the Portland area accused of conspiring to join the al-Qaida and Taliban terrorist organizations to wage war on the United States in Afghanistan.
Six people were charged last fall and the seventh, Maher "Mike" Hawash, was taken into custody as a material witness last month before he was charged.
The indictment lists Hawash along with Jeffrey Battle, Patrice Lumumba Ford, brothers Ahmed and Muhammad Bilal, Habis al Saoub and October Martinique Lewis. All but al Saoub are in federal custody.
The indictment issued Friday supersedes previous indictments and lists all seven suspects.
Stephen Houze, Hawash's attorney, did not immediately return phone calls.
But the friends and family of Hawash issued a statement of support.
"As we understand it, the grand jury only hears the Justice Department's side of the story. We look forward to the day when Mike will have an opportunity to tell his side of the story and defend himself," they said in the prepared statement.
Battle, the Bilals, Ford and al Saoub also were indicted on firearms conspiracy charges while Lewis and Ford were charged with money laundering. Battle, Ford, al Saoub and Ahmed Bilal also face firearms possession charges.
Lewis, Battle's former wife, is the only woman charged and the only defendant who is not accused of traveling overseas. She and Muhammad Bilal, the youngest of the seven, have asked for separate trials.
Dan Feiner, attorney for Ahmed Bilal, also said he filed a motion Friday seeking a separate trial but said he could not comment on the indictment until he had seen it.
The indictment spells out training with firearms and travel to China in an effort to enter Afghanistan late in 2001 following the Sept. 11 attack.
After the group failed to gain entrance to Afghanistan, Hawash left Hong Kong and returned to the United States at least a day ahead of the other men charged, the indictment said.
Lewis was accused of wiring money to the men totaling $1,730 while Ford was accused of wiring $1,183.
Defense attorneys filed a number of motions on Friday, but they were not available for release by the U.S. District Court clerk.
A quick inspection of the documents by The Associated Press indicated that defense attorneys planned to question the reliability of government witnesses and to try to prevent prosecutors from using "inflammatory" words that might influence a jury, such as "jihad."
Your honor, my client was not involved in any jihad as the prosecution suggests. He was only conspiring to kill innocent American civilians on behalf of Allah.
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