Detroit Imam Killed During FBI Raid
October 28, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News
Filed under Incident Reports
According to several new reports, the leader of a Detroit mosque, Luqman Ameen Abdullah, 53 years old, who had previously been known as Christopher Thomas,was fatally shot Wednesday during a Federal Bureau of Investigation raid on what authorities called a criminal gang run by U.S. converts to Islam.
An FBI spokeswoman said six men were arrested in the raid on a suburban warehouse and two Detroit homes. The men were arrested on suspicion of a variety of offenses, including illegal possession of firearms, trafficking in stolen goods and altering vehicle identification numbers.
Three suspects remain at large.Luqman Ameen Abdullah, 53 years old, who had previously been known as Christopher Thomas, refused to surrender. He shot a police dog before he was fatally shot by authorities, the U.S. attorney’s office in Detroit said in a statement.
This news release was issued today by Gina Balaya of the United States Attorney’s Office and Sandra Berchtold of the FBI:
11 Members/Associates of Ummah Charged with Federal Violations One Subject Fatally Shot During Arrest
United States Attorney Terrence Berg, Eastern District of Michigan, Andrew G. Arena, Special Agent in Charge (SAC), Federal Bureau of Investigation, (FBI), Detroit, Michigan, and Police Chief Warren Evans, Detroit Police Department (DPD), Detroit, Michigan announced a federal complaint was unsealed today charging Luqman Ameen Abdullah, a.k.a.Christopher Thomas, and 10 others with conspiracy to commit several federal crimes, including theft from interstate shipments, mail fraud to obtain the proceeds of arson, illegal possession and sale of firearms, and tampering with motor vehicle identification numbers.
The eleven defendants are members of a group that is alleged to have engaged in violent activity over a period of many years, and known to be armed.
In light of the information that the charged individuals were believed to be armed and dangerous, special safeguards were employed by law enforcement to secure the arrests without confrontation.
During the arrests today, the suspects were ordered to surrender. At one location, four suspects surrendered and were arrested without incident. Luqman Ameen Abdullah did not surrender and fired his weapon. An exchange of gunfire followed and Abdullah was killed. An FBI canine was also killed during the exchange.
Abdullah was the leader of part of a group which calls themselves Ummah (“the brotherhood”), a group of mostly African-American converts to Islam, which seeks to establish a separate Sharia-law governed state within the United States.
The Ummah is ruled by Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, formerly known as H. Rapp Brown, who is serving a state sentence in USP Florence, CO, ADMAX, for the murder of two police officers in Georgia. As detailed in the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint that was unsealed today, Abdullah has espoused the use of violence against law enforcement, and has trained members of his group in use of firearms and martial arts in anticipation of some type of action against the government.
Abdullah and other members of this group were known to carry firearms and other weapons.
Additionally, two federal search warrants were executed at 4467 Tireman Avenue, Detroit Michigan, and 9278 Genessee Street, Detroit, Michigan. The affidavits for these search warrants are sealed.
This case was jointly worked by the FBI, DPD, JTTF, and the United States Attorney’s Office – Eastern District of Michigan. We would like to express our appreciation to the Detroit Public Schools, Dearborn Police Department, Madison Heights Police and Fire Departments, and the members of JTTF for their assistance in this matter.
At the time of this release, Mujahid Carswell, Mohammad Alsahi and Yassir Ali Khan were still at large. Anyone with information regarding the location of these individuals should contact the FBI at (313) 965-2323
A complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A trial cannot be held on felony charges in a complaint. When the investigation is completed a determination will be made whether to seek a felony indictment.
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Scum of the earth. It is a shame the K-9 was killed. My condolences to the dog’s handler.
The reports about a “police attack” on a mosque have been out all day. Where is CAIR on this?