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CAIR cautions American Muslims will now face scapegoating and
bias
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WASHINGTON,
October 25 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - A national Islamic
civil rights and advocacy group Thursday, October 24, congratulated
U.S. law enforcement officials for the arrest of two suspects in the
series of sniper attacks in the Washington D.C. area, while, at the
same time, cautioning against speculation and stereotyping based on
the name of one suspect.
"Along with all Americans, Muslims hope today's arrests will
bring an end
to this tragic episode.
"The
swift apprehension of the suspects can only be attributed to effective
law enforcement by a number of local, state and national agencies.
"Our
hearts go out to the families and loved ones of those killed or
injured in these senseless attacks," said Nihad Awad, executive
director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
"We are concerned that because a suspect in this case has the
last name of 'Muhammad,' American Muslims will now face scapegoating
and bias.
"Police
reports indicate the suspects acted alone, based on their own
motivations. There is no indication that this case is related to Islam
or Muslims.
"We,
therefore, ask journalists and media commentators to avoid speculation
based
on stereotyping or prejudice.
"The
American Muslim community should not be held accountable for the
alleged criminal actions of what appear to be troubled and deranged
individuals," said Awad.
He urged American Muslims to go about their normal routines, but with
added
caution.
Last week, CAIR asked members of the American Muslim community to help
the
survivors of the sniper attacks and the families of those killed by
donating to a fund set up for that purpose.
Federal
and local authorities are expected to meet Friday, October 25, to
discuss filing charges against two suspects in the Washington-area
sniper case, as the search for more incriminating evidence continues,
reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
A
Gulf War veteran and a teenager driving around in a car with holes in
the trunk, presumably through which a rifle was fired at unsuspecting
victims, were apprehended Thursday, October 24, on charges unrelated
to the three-week crime spree that left ten people dead and three
wounded.
A
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent said tests had shown
that bullets from the Bushmaster 223-caliber semi-automatic rifle
found in the car were used in eight of the murders and the three
woundings.
Tests
on the two other murders had proved inconclusive.
Millions
of people in the Washington metropolitan area breathed a collective
sigh of relief as they resumed their daily lives Friday, leaving
behind the spooky feeling of being the unsuspecting target of a
lurking sniper.
Douglas
Gansler, state's attorney for Montgomery County in Maryland, and U.S.
Attorney for Maryland, Thomas DiBaggio, were to meet at Friday to
discuss filing of criminal charges against John Allen Muhammad, 41,
and John Lee Malvo, 17, a Jamaican national.
The
two African Americans were arrested early Thursday as they slept in a
car at a highway rest stop near Frederick, Maryland, north of
Washington.
Muhammad
was later charged with a federal firearms violation not connected to
the sniper killings.
Malvo
appeared before a juvenile court. But police said both were the
official suspects in the shootings that terrorized the Washington
region since October 2.
"We
now consider them suspects in the string of shootings in Maryland,
Virginia and the District of Columbia," Montgomery County police
chief Charles Moose, who coordinated the hunt, triumphantly said.
President
George W. Bush congratulated Moose by telephone as he was heading to
his Texas ranch for a summit Friday with Chinese President Jiang
Zemin, Bush spokesman, Ari Fleischer said.
In
a written statement, Bush said "the entire nation is grateful to
all of the local, state and federal law enforcement officials who have
worked with such urgency and with so little rest to solve the sniper
case."
Relieved
school officials in Montgomery County on Washington's northern border,
where all outdoor activities had been shut down, immediately issued a
statement saying Friday would see a return to normalcy.
Many
of the shootings had occurred in the county.
The
suspects were arrested within an hour of a police alert for a 1990
Chevrolet Caprice.
Truck
driver Ron Lancz saw the car with the men sleeping inside about 70
kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Washington.
Lancz
said he blocked the car's exit with his truck while he waited for
police, who took the pair into custody without incident.
A
500,000 dollar reward was posted for information leading to the
capture and conviction of the sniper.
The
investigation, which had been marked by tensions with the media over
leaked accounts and public unease over the lack of progress, gathered
pace in the hours prior to the arrest.
Federal
agents searching a home in Tacoma, in the west coast state of
Washington, took away a tree trunk that may have been used for target
practice when Muhammad and Malvo used to live there -- neighbors
remember hearing frequent gunfire coming from the property.
Police
were alerted to the pair after investigating a possible connection
between the Washington sniper and a the shooting death and injury of
two female liquor store employees in Montgomery, Alabama, on September
21.
The
sniper himself apparently tipped off police in telephone calls by
angrily telling them to look into a murder-robbery in Montgomery.
A
composite sketch of a suspect in the Alabama crime appeared to match
Malvo and media reports said a fingerprint on a cartridge at the scene
matched one in his files kept by immigration authorities.
According
to a Defense Department official, Muhammad served in the army from
1985 to 1994.
He
became a sergeant and fought in the 1991 Gulf War.
He
held the highest-level "expert" rating with the M-16 rifle,
which is similar to the Bushmaster police say was used by the sniper.
John
Allen Muhammad - A Profile
John
Allen Muhammad is a 42-year-old Gulf War veteran who converted to
Islam 17 years ago, according to a CNN report .
The
6-foot, 1-inch Muhammad was a member of the U.S. military who was
stationed in the 1980s at Fort Lewis, Washington, about 15 miles from
Tacoma, and at the now-closed Fort Ord, near Monterey, California.
Felix
Strozier ran a martial arts school with Muhammad in Tacoma several
years ago and described him as a "pretty nice person."
At
first, Strozier said their relationship was fine, but he said they had
a falling out after Muhammad borrowed $500 from the school and never
repaid the debt.
The
school closed in 1998.
He
described Muhammad as a strong believer in Islam who attended the
Million Man March.
A
former neighbor of Muhammad's said he provided security at the march,
which was organized by Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.
Nation
of Islam officials in Chicago had no immediate comment, CNN reported.
The
Seattle Times reported Thursday that Muhammad converted to Islam after
his first marriage ended in divorce.
The
Times quoted Carol Williams, his first wife and the mother of his
oldest son, as saying he converted to Islam 17 years ago, about the
same time he joined the Army.
Williams
told the Times that Muhammad was outgoing and had a good sense of
humor. "He wasn't a quiet type. He liked to talk. He liked to
mingle with people," she said.
Muhammad
had four children by two marriages that ended in divorce, Times added.
Both
involved bitter custody battles, the Times reported, but court records
showed no felony record for him in Washington state.
Federal
sources told Seattle Times that Muhammad and Malvo were allegedly
known to speak sympathetically about the 9/11 hijackers and may have
been motivated by anti-American sentiment.
But
Strozier ruled it out. Asked if Muhammad had ever expressed
anti-American beliefs to him, Strozier said no.
In
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Sheila Tezando, Muhammad's sister-in-law, said
she last saw Muhammad and Malvo three months ago at her home in Baton
Rouge when they were in town for a visit.
Tezando
said that there was nothing in their demeanor that would lead her to
believe that they were capable of any violent act.
"This
is all a shock," she said.
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