FBI Raids Halal (Muslim) Slaughterhouse in IL

[SF-TX]

Originally Posted by Razor

Max per diem?

Not for Kinsman, IL:

Lodging - $70.00
M&IE - $46.00

Of course, lodging was probably unavailable, so they had to stay in Chicago. In that case:

Lodging - $205.00
M&IE - $71.00

Source

[SF-TX]

Arrests tied to raid on slaughterhouse.

Two Chicago men charged in terror scheme
Feds say plot focused on Danish newspaper that published Muhammed cartoons
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October 28, 2009
By NATASHA KORECKI nkorecki@suntimes.com

When FBI agents at O'Hare arrested David Headley en route to Pakistan earlier this month on charges he plotted to kill a newspaper cartoonist in Denmark, authorities say he held an additional airline reservation – to Copenhagen.

He was to depart Thursday.

Headley's friend, Tahawwur Hussain Rana, who shared an extreme hatred for cartoons that depicted the prophet Mohammed, arranged for the flight, authorities said.

Any depiction of the prophet, even a favorable one, is forbidden by Islamic law as likely to lead to idolatry.

The Chicago men, who knew each other from a military school in Pakistan, on Tuesday were accused of an international plot dubbed "The Mickey Mouse Project" that since late 2008 included scheming with others to "commit terrorist acts against overseas targets," according to federal criminal complaints made public in Chicago.

The North Side men are accused of plotting to target employees of the Danish newspaper Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, which published cartoons of the prophet Mohammed in 2005, sparking violent riots across the Muslim world.

The most controversial of the 12 cartoons depicted Mohammed wearing a bomb with a lit fuse as a turban. That cartoon was drawn by Kurt Westergaard, 78 – who was targeted for assassination, authorities said.

But Headley's phone calls were wiretapped and his e-mails were under FBI review. When he tried to board his Pakistan-bound O'Hare flight Oct. 3, the FBI arrested him.

Headley, 49, then confessed to agents about the plot, authorities said. He was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit terrorist acts involving murder and maiming outside the United States and one count of conspiracy to provide material support to the alleged overseas terrorism conspiracy.

Rana, 48, a native of Pakistan and a Canadian citizen, was arrested Oct. 18 at his West Rogers Park home. He was charged with providing material support to a foreign terrorism conspiracy that involved Headley.

In October 2008, Headley used his birth name, Daood Gilani –which he changed in 2006 to avoid suspicion while traveling – when posting a message to a Yahoo group called "abdalians," authorities said.

"Everything is not a joke . . . We are not rehearsing a skit on Saturday Night Live," Headley said in the posting. "Call me old-fashioned, but I feel disposed towards violence for the offending parties."

Headley began his surveillance of targets in Denmark in 2008 and visited two of the newspaper's offices in January under the pretense of taking out an ad for a new business, authorities said.

Headley told agents the plot recently focused on Westergaard and the paper's cultural editor, Flemming Rose, "whom Headley felt were directly responsible for the cartoons," the criminal complaint states.

He also allegedly told agents he was trained by a terrorist organization called Lashkar-e-Taiba, according to his criminal complaint.

Authorities say Headley reported to Ilyas Kashmiri, the operational chief of what the FBI describes as a Pakistani-based terrorist organization with links to al-Qaida, according to the complaint. Headley was headed to Pakistan to report to Kashmiri when the FBI foiled his plans, according to charges.

When he was arrested, FBI agents found a memory stick on him that contained 10 surveillance videos, including footage of the newspaper office and Danish military barracks, the complaint said.

Westergaard was told Tuesday of the alleged plot to kill him.

"I feel confident and safe in my private life," Westergaard said. "I'm angry because I have to live with threats, just because I have done my job. PET (police intelligence) has advised me to keep a low profile and don't give statements. I will follow that, but I'm allowed to say that I'm angry."

Rana owns several businesses, including First World Immigration Services, which has offices on Devon Avenue in Chicago, New York and Toronto, as well as a meat-processing plant in Kinsman. That plant is used to slaughter goats and sheep per Muslim religious requirements.

Extensive means were used to carry out a search warrant of the plant earlier this month. Witnesses said about 100 agents were on the scene. Helicopters, trucks and SUVs could be seen in front of the building during the raid.

Rana's attorney asked the community to reserve judgment.

"Mr. Rana is a well-respected businessman in the Chicagoland community. He adamantly denies the charges and eagerly awaits his opportunity to contest them in court and to clear his and his family's name," said attorney Patrick Blegen. "We would ask that the community respect the fact that these are merely allegations and not proof."

Contributing: Mary Wisniewski, Mark Konkol, Nancy Stuenkel


http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/n...091026.article