I think I read shortly thereafter that the five had been released. However, I think I have read in the Washington Post within the past few days that the French police have recently arrested another Islamist on suspicion of having planned to attack a French cathedral.
By SCOTT SUNDE SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Newspaper readers in Washington, D.C., were left with an overwhelming impression yesterday that Whidbey Island -- home of a naval air station -- was crawling with suspected terrorists just before Sept. 11.
But Island County Sheriff Michael Hawley debunked part of those reports, saying they were based on "raw data."
"We report every tip we get. But nine out of 10 turn out to be bogus," Hawley said.
That holds true for most of what The Washington Times reported yesterday. The newspaper said it had obtained a copy of a message from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service about suspicious activity near ports and bases before Sept. 11.
The message purportedly notes that "three Arab males" checked into an Island County motel near the naval air station.
The men are part of a crew of six men of Middle Eastern descent. They were on Whidbey Island to work on a commercial roofing job in downtown Oak Harbor, Hawley said.
The newspaper also said Navy intelligence reported that "three Arabic males" may have been surveying the air station.
They had been seen videotaping the 180-foot-high Deception Pass Bridge.
Hawley said the men were part of the roofing crew. They were visiting the sites and taking videotape as tourists do, the sheriff said.
The Washington Times also reported that a Middle Eastern man went to county offices and got maps of property around the air station.
Hawley said a man he described as Middle Eastern did show up Sept. 10 at Oak Harbor City Hall. He was referred to the county assessor's office.
In another incident, the sheriff said a woman reported Sept. 17 that she chatted with a Middle Eastern man Sept. 13 at Camano Island State Park. She said he was using an "expensive camera" and seemed to be aiming it at the air station.
An investigation showed the man is Mir Latif Ahmad. Hawley described him as an Afghan national who lives in King County and has a business in Renton. He was convicted of child molestation in Clark County 10 years ago, the sheriff said.
Hawley said the Immigration and Naturalization Service recently took him into custody.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- P-I reporter Scott Sunde can be reached at 206-448-8331 or scottsunde@seattlepi.com
Sunday, November 4, 2001