Friday, November 13th, 2009
Prosecutors’ complaint against Alavi Foundation
Federal prosecutors on Thursday moved to seize four U.S. mosques and a Fifth Avenue skyscraper owned by a nonprofit Muslim organization suspected of being secretly controlled by the Iranian government.
Assa Corp. Amended Civil Forfeiture Complaint
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Friday, November 13th, 2009
Houston spiritual center is among properties prosecutors are moving to seize
NEW YORK — Federal prosecutors Thursday took steps to seize four U.S. mosques, including one in Houston, and a Fifth Avenue skyscraper owned by a nonprofit Muslim organization call Alavi Foundation long suspected of being secretly controlled by the Iranian government.
In what could prove to be one of the biggest counterterrorism seizures in U.S. history, prosecutors filed a civil complaint in federal court seeking the forfeiture of more than $500 million in assets of the Alavi Foundation and an alleged front company.
The targeted facilities include the Islamic Education Center, located at 2313 S. Voss in Houston, an FBI official said.
Faheem Kazimi, chairman of the board of directors of IEC, said tonight that the center leases its building from Alavi Foundation. No other connection exists, he said. (more…)
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Friday, November 13th, 2009
(Bloomberg) — The Alavi Foundation, part owner of a 36-story New York office tower, is a front for the government of Iran, the U.S. government alleged in a lawsuit seeking to seize the building. The U.S. today filed a new complaint in the 2008 lawsuit. The original case, which sought to seize the interest in the building held by ASSA Co., a company based in the U.K.’s Channel Islands, claimed the Iranian government’s Bank Melli co-owned the building through ASSA.
The new complaint seeks to seize the Alavi Foundation’s interest in 650 Fifth Avenue as well, along with accounts and property the Alavi Foundation owns in New York, Maryland, Virginia, Texas and California.
“The Alavi Foundation has effectively been a front for the government of Iran,” U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement. “For two decades, the Alavi Foundation’s affairs have been directed by various Iranian officials, including Iranian ambassadors at the United Nations, in violation of a series of U.S. laws.” (more…)
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