A string of raids by the FBI targeting members of a radical Islamist group calling themselves “Ummah” has ended with 10 arrests and one suspect killed in a shootout. The leader of the Detroit-based Masjid Al-Haqq mosque, Luqman Ameen Abdullah (also known as Christopher Thomas), refused to surrender and was shot and killed after exchanging fire with FBI agents. Ten other individuals with ties to the nationwide “Ummah” were arrested and taken into custody without incident. Three more individuals, Mujahid Carswell, Mohammad Alsahi, and Yassir Ali Khan, remain at large. From the Department of Justice press release:
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 gun fire followed and Abdullah was killed. An FBI canine was also killed during the exchange.
“Ummah,” or “the brotherhood,” is an Islamic movement whose nationwide leader, Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of two Georgia police officers. Al-Amin is reported to have preached violence and trained members how to use various weapons. The group’s aim was to establish a separate state, governed by sharia law, within the United States.
Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here.
12 Comments
Good job G-men. It is truely sad loosing the service dog. Does not sound like any other G-men got hurt. Seems like lots of plots have come undone the last 2 months here in the Mainland. Good law enforcement cooperation and some good fortune. Keep up the great work. To all those that want to live under Islam, move to one of these totatiarian garden spots (and don’t come back): The Kingdom, Yemen, Syria, Persia, Pakistan. It is not going to happen here in the US.
GRH: if you look at the background on this (and what the FBI have said so far) this does not appear to be the standard “terrorist plot” but a home grown Islamist (African American) whose incitement is just on the right side of the law but was involved in other violent and criminal acts.
Looks like more of a gang or ‘militia’ style bust than terrorism-related. Regardless, the deceased here had a major screw loose and needed to be legally dealt with. If he brandished any sort of firearm, much less fired it, then the FBI did the right thing.
Really horrible to see a good service dog die in the line of duty. RIP little guy.
Good job FBI …It is disconcerting to know that Islamic terror is raising its ugly head in the US. What is worth appluding for me is the professional manner in which you guys doing this job. Back in India even Islamist are treated with kid gloves by the politicans (for Muslim vote) … the case of terrorist killed in Delhi last year (where prominent Indian politicans raised doubt over police actions) or even 26/11 is a pointer in this direction. Indian police force as a result faces double trouble – the jihadis on one hand and the unscrupulous politicans on the other hand.
I could almost believe the tale of “a home grown Islamist ” but then the folks at the Council on American Islamic Relations confessed to intimate knowledge of this imam, characterizing him as “charitable”. Perhaps he was a donor to CAIR or had a hand in distributing the funds they provided to him. CAIR is mostly funded from abroad to carry out the agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood, the mother organization of Al Qaeda and like-minded terrorist groups.
So what’s behind the spat of arrests and now a shootout? Is this just the results of the post 911 reforms starting to pay off? Has there been a decision to strike suspects now? I just wonder if this is a random spike in arrests all happening now, or if their is some wider strategy at work here.
I wonder what ties they have to prison gangs?
Yes great job FBI. But this ‘Imam: is small potatoes compared to what’s REALLY going on in Michigan.
I’d like to see some raids in Dearborn to break up the fundraising capabilities and activites of Hama and Hezbollah. Think that’ll happen soon? nope
the voter block is too big
KP,
I understand what they released and the information in the complaint. The Feds went after the illegal activity they could target in order to take away their means to potentially attack in the future. Similar to how the Feds finally got Capone, tax evasion instead of “mob” activity long before RICO laws. Same result, a gang of criminals indicted, off the street, going to trail focused on protecting their backsides instead of setting up their “sharia utopia” in the land of the free and home of the brave.
I bet most of these guys have done time. THAT’S where it probably started. Real sorry about the pooch, as I consider him/her more “human” than these REAL animals. Yup, the G-men got thier man. I read about Dearborn, MI, and you know the FBI is wired in there. Look at wats happening in the UK..you wanna see that here? No, ain’t gonna happen. I wish INS would curb, no RESTRICT most immigration from moslem countries. Why can a P-stani get here, but a Filipino can’t?? That’s not fair. PI has its own moslem prob, but damn most want a better life..
I bet most of these guys have done time. THAT’S where it probably started. Real sorry about the pooch, as I consider him/her more “human” than these REAL animals. Yup, the G-men got thier man. I read about Dearborn, MI, and you know the FBI is wired in there. Look at wats happening in the UK..you wanna see that here? No, ain’t gonna happen. I wish INS would curb, no RESTRICT most immigration from moslem countries. Why can a P-stani get here, but a Filipino can’t?? That’s not fair. PI has its own moslem prob, but damn most want a better life..
“Ummah” does not mean “Brotherhood,” as is incorrectly stated in, I believe, the story from The New York Times. It means “community.”