http://www.insidebayarea.com/portlet/article/html/fragments/print_article.js
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Pakistani denies he is tied to terrorism
Immigration-fraud bail hearing in Oakland delayed for 38-year-old
By Josh Richman, STAFF WRITER
Inside Bay Area
OAKLAND - A bail hearing in the immigration-fraud case of a Pakistani man
who prosecutors say has ties to a terrorist group was postponed Monday so
his lawyer can sort out issues with immigration authorities.
But a lawyer for the organization was present as well, and said outside the
courtroom that the government's accusation of terrorist activity is
completely false and unprecedented.
A federal grand jury indictment handed up April 20 charges Shehrezad Faruk
Czar, 38, with one count of false swearing in an immigration matter, a
felony with maximum penalties of 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000
fine; he has pleaded not guilty. The government says he lied about his
academic achievements and his status as a Nobel Prize nominee in statements
made as he tried to obtain a visa.
In a filing last week, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lewis Davis also claimed Czar
"admitted that he knows Altaf Hussain and has been in e-mail contact with
him." Hussain is the founder and leader of the Muttahida Quami Movement, a
Pakistani political party representing Urdu-speaking immigrants and
allegedly is responsible for violent crimes including murder, kidnapping and
at least one bombing, Davis wrote.
"While the United States is not prepared at this time to suggest that the
defendant is involved in terrorism, his contacts with Altaf Hussain and his
denial of Hussain's involvement in terrorist activities are suspicious," he
wrote.
In court Monday, Assistant Federal Public Defender Jerome Matthews said his
client "flatly denies being a member of or being associated with any known
terrorist organization." U.S. Magistrate Judge Wayne Brazil postponed Czar's
bail hearing at Matthews' request and ordered Czar to appear Friday before
U.S.District Judge Martin Jenkins in Oakland.
Outside the courtroom, Matthews said "any time the government makes this
kind of allegation, (officials get) excited. It's a very easy allegation to
make."
Also present Monday was Ibad Rehman, a Virginia lawyer for the MQM. Outside
the courtroom, Rehman said he is unaware of any other court filing in the
nation in which the government has claimed the MQM is a terrorist group.
Neither the MQM nor Hussain are on State and Treasury department lists of
foreign terrorist organizations and individuals.
The MQM's London headquarters issued a statement over the weekend saying it
has "categorically and utterly denied any link" with Czar "and strongly
rejected all the baseless, unfounded and false allegations leveled against
the party and its leadership."
The MQM, which holds seats in Pakistan's National Assembly, is "the only
political party in Pakistan that is openly challenging and peacefully
struggling against religious extremists," and has "unconditionally supported
the international community and the United States in the war against
terrorism," the statement said.
Rehman said Monday the claims made in Davis' memo are a "100 percent
different position" than that taken by U.S. diplomats in Pakistan, and any
claims that Hussain has faced criminal charges or been responsible for any
violence are "untrue."
Contact Josh Richman at [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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