3 months ago
CARMICHAEL, CA - The Muslim congregation that uses a building owned by an organization at the heart of a federal anti-terrorism probe shifted its Friday prayer service to another site.
The 150-member congregation gathers in a meeting hall on a half-acre site on Marconi Avenue.
Federal prosecutors on Thursday filed court paperwork in Manhattan to seize the Carmichael property as well as mosques in Maryland, Virginia, Texas and the headquarters building in New York all owned by the Alavi Foundation. Prosecutors say the Alavi Foundation is controlled by the Iranian government and has been illegally funneling money to Iran.
Carmichael congregation member Yusef Alil Muhammad said the court action caught his group in the middle and has led them to seek another prayer site.
"We're not doing anything wrong, illegal or immoral," he explained. "We had no reason to go and hide. We were just concerned about the legality and safety of using the building while it's under some sort of investigation."
Prosecutors said there's no reason to believe Muslims worshipping in the Alavi Foundation properties were engaged in improper activity. But a Sacramento Muslim leader said that message may be lost on many.
"The damage has been done," said Imam Mohammed Abdul-Azeez of Sacramento's SALAM Islamic center. "People right here in Carmichael think there are terrorists or people associated with Iran right in their backyard, and that is absolutely the wrong message."
Yusef Ali Muhammad said the Carmichael congregation has already begun searching for a permanent gathering site.
"I'm happy to say it (the federal seizure action) has brought the congregation together," he said. "What we're about is inviting what is good and forbidding what is bad."
by George Warren, GWarren@news10.net
News10/KXTV
