FBI Looking for 5 men......

[Dreadsox]

FBI seeks 5 men in U.S. illegally
Sunday, December 29, 2002 Posted: 8:50 PM EST (0150 GMT)


WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The FBI said Sunday it wants the public's help in finding five men who may have entered the United States illegally within the past week.

An administration official said the names were developed in conjunction with a terrorism investigation, but would not characterize the level of concern surrounding the men. A caption accompanying photos of the men on the FBI's Web site reads: "War on Terrorism."

Although the FBI said it had no specific information the men were connected to terrorist activities, the agency said it wants to question the men "based upon information developed in the course of ongoing investigations."

The names of the men came up repeatedly in domestic and overseas investigations, according to an FBI source.

The FBI said it believes the men have information that may shed more light on the security situation facing the United States.

The FBI identified the five men as Abid Noraiz Ali, 25; Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, 21; Mustafa Khan Owasi, 33; Adil Pervez, 19; Akbar Jamal, 28. But the bureau cautioned the men's names and ages may be false.

The men may have entered the United States from Canada, the administration official said, possibly on or around December 24, the FBI said.

The FBI said it has been working with homeland security agencies -- including the Customs Service, the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Transportation Security Administration -- to locate the men.

The FBI has also given information about the men, including their pictures, to 18,000 local and state law enforcement agencies.

Anyone with any information about the group is asked to contact their nearest FBI office. Photographs of the individuals can be found on the FBI's Web site at www.fbi.gov.

CNN correspondents Jeanne Meserve and Suzanne Malveaux contributed to this report.

Link to the pictures....

http://www.fbi.gov/terrorinfo/122002si.htm

 

[diamond]

FBI seeks 5 men in U.S. illegally
Sunday, December 29, 2002 Posted: 8:50 PM EST (0150 GMT)


WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The FBI said Sunday it wants the public's help ....

The men may have entered the United States from Canada, the administration official said, possibly on or around December 24, the FBI said.



Anyone with any information about the group is asked to contact their nearest FBI office. Photographs of the individuals can be found on the FBI's Web site at www.fbi.gov.

CNN correspondents Jeanne Meserve and Suzanne Malveaux contributed to this report.

Link to the pictures....

http://www.fbi.gov/terrorinfo/122002si.htm

Hopefully we can catch the bastards.
Glad to see our nieghbor in the north is becoming more proactive..in fighting this world wide scourge



db9

 

[bonoman]

How did i know someone would comment on the Canada thing!!

How else do you think they get into your country? Dig from China!!

You must not be doing a very good job protecting your borders! Maybe you should focus on having a heavier border presence!

 

[Dreadsox]

You must not be doing a very good job protecting your borders! Maybe you should focus on having a heavier border presence!

Yes, but when we do everyone cries FOUL!!!!!

 

[diamond]

How did i know someone would comment on the Canada thing!!

How else do you think they get into your country? Dig from China!!

You must not be doing a very good job protecting your borders! Maybe you should focus on having a heavier border presence!

good one
hosehead

 

[bonoman]

Thanks!

 

[Dreadsox]

FEDS RACING TO THWART 19-MAN ?TERROR TEAM'

By LARRY CELONA and BILL SANDERSON
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ABID NORAIZ ALI

December 30, 2002 -- Up to 19 men of Islamic background have entered the United States illegally in the last few days on a possible terror mission, law-enforcement sources told The Post yesterday.
Pictures of five of the men wanted for questioning are posted on the FBI's Web site.

Those five and the remaining 14 are believed to have reached the United States by using phony IDs to travel through Britain and then Canada, the sources said.

Exactly what the men may be up to is unknown. Officials also don't know if the men have specific targets in mind.

But The Post's sources said the 19 are believed to be scattered through several U.S. cities, including New York.

The group planned to be in place in the United States today, said the sources.

The men are believed to come from Pakistan and "surrounding countries," the sources said.

Publicly, the FBI says it is looking for just five men, who it says should be deemed armed and dangerous. They're identified as Abid Noraiz Ali, 25; Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, 21; Mustafa Khan Owasi, 33; Adil Pervez, 19; and Akbar Jamal, 28.

But the FBI warned that all the names and birth dates may be bogus.

The FBI said it had no indication the five were linked to terrorist activities, but still wanted to question them "based upon information developed in the course of ongoing investigations."

The bureau said it was working with Customs, the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Transportation Security Agency to find the men.

INS spokesman Dan Kane said yesterday the immigration agency has "implemented additional measures to look for these individuals."

The FBI said it has alerted law-enforcement agencies around the country and the world. "Anyone with any information pertaining to these individuals is asked to contact their nearest FBI office," the bureau said.

The FBI also takes tips through its Web site, www.fbi.gov.

The NYPD is making a special effort to find the men, and a bulletin will be distributed with information to help officers identify them, the sources said.

It's not unusual for terrorists to try to strike over the year-end holidays.

Islamic terrorist Richard Reid allegedly tried to blow up an American Airlines jet over the Atlantic Ocean with shoe bombs three days before Christmas 2001.

And in December 1999, authorities captured Ahmed Ressam, an Algerian national later convicted of plotting the millennium bomb attack on Los Angeles International Airport.

 

[Salome]

Yes, but when we do everyone cries FOUL!!!!!

who cries "foul"???

I have read comments + made them myself that it is not fair to treat illegal immigrants from certain countries different than others
I've never read anything that you shouldn't try to have as little a number of illegal immigrants in your country as possible

 

[Dreadsox]

Salome,

You and I are never going to agree on this issue I think.
What you and I perceive as fair, are two very different things. If people want to come to my country, from a country that has been known havens of terrorists, or have citizenship in said country, I believe 100% with my heart, that they should be looked at more closely than others.

It is a shame that it has come to this, however, it is necessary. But instead of blaming the terrorists....The US gets the blame

The finger gets pointed at the "unfair" policies of the United States. If we were not attacked, and if our prior Presidents had acted with some foresight on these issues, we would not be in the situation we are in today.

I am sure we can both look forward to a day when this changes.


Peace

 

[martha]

So, all the FBI has is a few pictures, some bogus names, birthdates, and a really bad feeling about these guys? And I'm supposed to get my panties in a bunch about this and quake in my tennis shoes?

I'm not buyin' it. They're still trying to make up for the missed leads about the real bad guys. Has the FBI or CIA really caught anyone that was actually intending to do me or my fellow Americans harm? No. Just some wild goose chases designed to make me feel like I need spooks covering my ass to the tune of millions of dollars.

 

[Dreadsox]

Has the FBI or CIA really caught anyone that was actually intending to do me or my fellow Americans harm? No.

FBI, CIA Showcase Successes in War on Terror

Almost 100 terrorist plots, most of them hatched overseas and some targeting the United States, have been thwarted since last year?s September 11 attacks, a FBI official said Saturday. The disclosure came on the heels of a statement by Central Intelligence Agency Director George Tenet that more than a third of top leaders of the Al-Qaeda terror network identified prior to September 11 had now been either killed or captured. It also follows a scathing report by an investigative congressional commission that found the US intelligence community had been receiving warnings about the possibility of terrorists using hijacked planes to attack US targets since at least 1994 and did little about it. In their remarks, both the CIA director and Federal Bureau of Investigation spokesman Bill Carter emphasized the successes of the massive counterterrorism campaign launched by President George W. Bush in the wake of the attacks on New York and Washington that left about 3,000 people dead.

"Nearly one hundred," Carter said when asked if the war on terror had unearthed any specific number of plots. But he pointed out the FBI was not alone in eliminating these threats. "It?s part of the war on terrorism," he explained. "It?s a combined effort of the part of the US law enforcement and intelligence communities and their partners overseas." The official highlighted some of the most visible successes, including the arrest in Chicago last May of former gang member and suspected Al-Qaeda operative Jose Padilla and September?s discovery in Lackawanna, New York of an alleged militant cell, whose members had attended a training camp run by followers of Al-Qaeda head Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan. But Carter declined to disclose any yet unpublicized activities undertaken by the FBI and other US government agencies as part of their effort to ward off the terrorist threat to US interests worldwide.

Tenet, who spoke Wednesday at the Nixon Center, a local think tank, where he was presented a distinguished service award, pointed out that even before the September 11 attacks the CIA had brought 70 Al-Qaeda terrorists to justice around the world. "More than 1/3 of the top leadership identified before the war has been killed or captured," Tenet stated. "Almost half of our successes against senior Al-Qaeda members has come in recent months." Among those netted by the CIA were Al-Qaeda?s operations chief for the Persian Gulf, a principal Al-Qaeda planner and numerous operations officers and facilitators, Tenet said. He did not give any names but said none of those taken prisoner were idle. "Indeed, every Al-Qaeda operations officer and facilitator we have captured so far, was in the midst of preparing attacks when captured," Tenet pointed out. The successes notwithstanding, the CIA director warned the United States cannot win the war on terror simply by defeating and dismantling Al-Qaeda.

 

[nbcrusader]

Thanks for posting that Dreadsox. It will always be difficult to measure the success of anti-terrorist efforts on a day-to-day basis. We will never really know how many plots, activities, etc., have been thwarted, delayed or hindered.

 

[martha]

Sorry, still not buying it. That's a lot of chest-pounding and generalities, but few specifics. The Padilla guy and the "alleged militant cell" are the only two cases specifically cited. The rest are those vague "Al-Queda" references that are thrown around now and again.

 

[Sparkysgrrrl]

So, all the FBI has is a few pictures, some bogus names, birthdates, and a really bad feeling about these guys? And I'm supposed to get my panties in a bunch about this and quake in my tennis shoes?

Exactly what I was gonna say.
Are we supposed to turn in any Arab looking person we see, because it might be those guys a lot of good telling us fake names and ages will do.

 

[Dreadsox]

An article about a United Nations Report published on December 17, 2002. It emphasizes some of the successes and the dangers still represented by the Al-Qaeda organization. Notice the last line mentions from the UN report:

"Despite significant success to date in the efforts to counter al-Qaeda and its associates, the fight is far from over."


The president himself pointed out from the start that some things we would hear about and others we would not. They are all important parts in the war against Al-Qaeda.

In reading the "Bush at War" book, I am very surprised at how much Secretary Paul O'Niel was involved in eliminating the cash flow to Al-Qaeda.

Peace



Al-Qaeda network still at large


Massive worldwide deployment of intelligence fails to stop al-Qaeda from carrying out bloody attacks in 2002.


By Sammy Ketz - PARIS

Despite what was probably the biggest worldwide deployment of secret services ever seen, the hunt for activists of the extremist Islamic group al-Qaeda failed to prevent several bloody new attacks in the year just ending.

In a report released on December 17 the United Nations estimated that there were still some 10,000 members of the network, widely held responsible for the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States and a series of others around the world, still at large.

Al-Qaeda, whose name means "the base" in Arabic, "continues to pose a substantial threat, globally, to peace and security," the report said.

Although it "appears to have suffered some significant disruption to its infrastructure," al-Qaeda remained "an insidious mass movement, and no country or group of countries can handle the problem alone," the report added.

In 2002 a massive deployment of forces to hunt down activists worldwide notably failed to prevent, among other incidents:

- a suicide vehicle attack which killed 21 people, 14 of them German tourists, near a synagogue on the Tunisian island of Djerba on April 11;

- a suicide bomb attack which killed 14 people on a bus, 11 of them French engineers, in the Pakistani city of Karachi on May 8;

- a suicide speedboat bomb attack on a French oil tanker off Yemen on October 6, which killed a crew member and raised fears of a campaign against industrialised countries' energy supply lines;

- a bomb attack that killed over 190 people, many of them tourists from rich countries, on the Indonesian island of Bali on October 12;

- twin anti-Israeli attacks which killed 17 people plus three suicide bombers and narrowly missed shooting down an airliner carrying hundreds of tourists near the Kenyan city of Mombasa on November 28.

All of this despite the decision by the United States, following the September 11 attacks, to promote a worldwide "war on terror," both by invading Afghanistan to root out al-Qaeda bases and by calling for help from secret services around the world.

According to the White House, a total of 122 countries to date have offered military resources for "war on terror," and some 2,700 people suspected of belonging to the al-Qaeda network have been detained around the world.

Of those the United States is keeping some 600 without trial or access to lawyers in the US base of Guantanamo, on Cuba.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has announced that about 100 anti-al-Qaeda operations have been successful in the 15 months since the September 11 attacks.

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the main US body responsible for under-cover activities outside the country, says that around a third of the people identified before September 11 as al-Qaeda operatives have been either killed or captured.

In one high-tech CIA operation that hit headlines, a pilotless military aircraft was used to fire a missile that killed six people, one of them said to be top al-Qaeda suspect Qaed Salem Sunian Al-Harthy, as they were driving in a rural area of Yemen on November 3.

Harthy was suspected of having helped organize an al-Qaeda suicide attack that killed 17 US navy sailors in a warship anchored off Yemen in October 2000.

Among alleged al-Qaeda chiefs arrested in 2002 were Abu Zubaydah, said to be a top aide to the group's leader Osama bin Laden, Ramzi bin al-Shaiba, said to have coordinated the September 11 attacks, and Mohsen al-Fadli and Abdel Rahim al-Nashiri, said to be in charge of operations in the Gulf region.

However there was continuing speculation as to whether bin Laden, who was one of the US's "most-wanted" men even before September 11, was still alive.

An audiotape said to have been made by him, and claiming responsibility for recent attacks including the Bali bombing, was broadcast by the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera TV channel on November 12.

Many officials said they believed the tape was indeed made by bin Laden, although it was technically impossible to be certain.

On December 14 the New York Times reported that US President George W. Bush has given the CIA full authorization to kill some two dozen al-Qaeda leaders in all.

They include bin Laden - assuming he is still alive - and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri, the paper said.

Some 500 people said to be Islamic extremists linked to al-Qaeda have been arrested to date in Asia, and around 200 people are being held on similar grounds in Europe.

Just under 100 people are being detained in Middle Eastern countries, and about 50 are held in North African ones.

In the United States over 150 people are being held on various charges in relation with the inquiry into September 11, and in Latin America around 40, most of them of Lebanese origin, are in detention.

The UN report further notes that despite stepped-up financial measures, "al-Qaeda appears to still have access to substantial funding from its previously established investments... and deep-pocket supporters."

France's top anti-terrorism prosecutor, Jean-Louis Bruguiere, has meanwhile said that international cooperation to fight the network, notably in Europe, "is not good enough, given what is at stake."

The UN report concludes: "Despite significant success to date in the efforts to counter al-Qaeda and its associates, the fight is far from over."

"Much work still needs to be done."

 

[martha]

I think I see the point you're trying to make, Dreadsox, but I still don't see any direct threats/plots uncovered here in the States with all these detentions, arrests, bulletins, etc. Overseas there have been attacks, but what exactly have these domestic spies broken up?

 

[DebbieSG]

I'm glad they (gov) have their heads up enough to realize these guys might pose a danger. If they're going to round up Arabs living here, they certainly are going to want to aprehend 5 guys who entered suspiciously.

We are still berating officials for not connecting the dots leading up to 9/11, like not thinking it strange that certain foreigners would want to learn to fly a plane, and here we have a dot we could put our thumbs on, so to speak.

 

[bonoman]

Well how did these people get into your country in the first place?

How long after you let them in did the FBI relize they shouldnt be there. It is your agents at the borders and they have the right to say NO to anyone, why werent they stopped then? I see this as some agent at the border letting 5 guys through then saying afterwards that maybe he shouldnt and not the FBI getting really worried they just let in 5 terrorist. They are worried this is going to make them look bad. Dread, really who cares what other people think of your customs agents as long as you are keeping the terrorists out of your country!!!

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

I agree with Martha and Sparkysgrrrl.

Angela

 

[Mrs. Edge]

I don't have time to read through everything right now, so I don't know if it's been mentioned (thus diamond's comment) but it's actually Canada that alerted the US to this in the first place.

Canada sparks U.S. manhunt
RCMP gave names, photos of five men now sought by FBI


LES WHITTINGTON
OTTAWA BUREAU

OTTAWA?A Canadian tip sparked a manhunt for five men who could be part of a larger group with Al Qaeda connections, sources said yesterday.

The tip arose out of information gleaned during a joint U.S.-Canadian investigation into fraudulent passports and visas.

The RCMP in Canada alerted the FBI to five men believed to have entered the U.S. using false passports and provided the Americans with names and photos of the men, sources said.

The five men, who are believed to be travelling on false British passports, were traced to a forger in Pakistan with links to Al Qaeda who has helped funnel other people into the United States, a senior U.S. law enforcement official told Knight Ridder Newspapers.

One law enforcement official said the men were Pakistanis, but FBI spokesman Ed Cogswell said he could not confirm that.

Based on the Canadian information, the FBI launched a nationwide search for the men, saying they could have connections to others under watch in terrorism investigations.

On Friday, the Immigration and Naturalization Service and U.S. Border Patrol headquarters issued a private alert to northern border-security agencies, telling agents to be on the lookout for a group of 19 men who may be smuggled over the border.

The alert included names and said the men might be connected to terrorism.

Officials are uncertain whether the five men actually entered the country and how many of the remaining 14 also may have crossed the border.

The FBI stressed it had no specific information any of the men are plotting terrorist actions. But the manhunt took on intense urgency across the U.S., where there are fears that terrorists could attack large crowds gathering for the New Year's holiday, especially in New York City's Times Square.

New York City police spokesperson Michael O'Looney said his department has increased its counterterrorism efforts as a result of the FBI warning.

New York Governor George Pataki said he had spoken with Tom Ridge, the director of homeland security, several times in recent days, and "there are no specific threats to New York that I have been advised of."

American law enforcement officials said the intelligence indicated the men crossed from Canada, but there was no specific information on what port of entry.

RCMP spokesperson Paul Marsh confirmed the men are believed to have entered the U.S. but there is no proof they are still there.

The FBI released photographs of five men Sunday. However, Cogswell acknowledged the FBI is not certain that the names and birth dates released with the photos are correct or that the men even entered the country.

Those sought have been identified as: Abid Noraiz Ali, Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, Mustafa Khan Owasi, Adil Pervez and Akbar Jamal, all born between 1969 and 1983.

U.S. Customs Service spokesperson Dean Boyd said inspectors along the border have stepped up their vigilance, asking more questions and increasing the number of vehicle inspections.

The intelligence information on the men came from an investigation into a worldwide smuggling operation that brings individuals with illegal passports into the United States.

The subjects of the manhunt are not those who ran the operation but likely are people who may have been smuggled across the border, Cogswell said.

The investigation of how the five men could have entered the U.S. illegally has focused on the border with Canada. "If they did come into the U.S., they could have come from Canada," FBI spokesperson Jule Miller said yesterday. "We don't know for sure."

"We don't have any information right now to guarantee these people are in the U.S.," Miller added.

Canadian sources, citing the ongoing police probe, would not comment on how the men might have reached the United States.

"The RCMP is continuing to co-operate with the FBI and the solicitor-general is aware of the situation," said Dan Brien, a spokesperson for Solicitor-General Wayne Easter.

Sources in Ottawa also declined to say how the information on the five men was developed other than to say that the RCMP is co-operating with U.S. and other police agencies in anti-terrorist investigations.

Among the locations authorities were focusing their search on is New York, based on information received from at least one intelligence source, U.S. officials said yesterday.


Because of the large New Year's Eve gathering, authorities in New York City were taking the information seriously.

Police sealed manholes and removed mailboxes yesterday as part of their preparations for the traditional Times Square celebration. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said a couple thousand officers will be on duty, similar to last year.

Police plan to deploy undercover officers throughout the crowd and put snipers on roofs. Bomb squads will sweep the Times Square area and participants will be searched as they enter the zone.

With files from Associated Press

 

[Dreadsox]

You took the words right outta my mouth Mrs. Edge.

Thanks Canada for working with us!!!


Peace

 

[Sparkysgrrrl]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/south/01/01/pakistan.wanted.man.ap/index.html

Pakistan man says he's pictured in FBI alert

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) --A Pakistani jeweler said Wednesday his picture is among those of five suspects who the FBI says may have entered the United States on falsified passports. The man said he has never visited the United States.

An Associated Press photograph of Mohammed Asghar taken at his shop in Lahore on Wednesday was a near-perfect match for the one included on the FBI list under the name Mustafa Khan Owasi, down to the prominent mole on Asghar's left cheek.

Asghar, 30, told AP that he was surprised to open a local newspaper and see his picture with another man's name beneath it.

Asghar said his only attempt at traveling abroad was frustrated when police in the United Arab Emirates discovered he had a forged visa. He suggested that the document forgers he once patronized could have used his picture to create false travel documents for another man.

"I am a Pakistani and am living in my country, but American authorities have released my picture among those who are being traced by the FBI for entering America," Asghar said. "I have no links with any terrorist organization."

The only perceivable difference between the AP and FBI photos is that the man in the FBI photo is clean-shaven and shorter-haired. The FBI photo was presumably taken several months ago as part of Asghar's effort to buy a false visa.

Asghar, a jeweler, acknowledged that two months ago he tried to travel to Britain on forged documents. But he said that immigration officials at the airport in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, detected the falsification, questioned him for nine hours, arrested him and deported him back to Pakistan.

Asked if the forgers were responsible for switching the photos, Asghar said "I don't know who misused my travel documents. I don't know how my picture reached the hands of the FBI." Asghar refused to say where, or from whom, he bought the forged documents.

Asghar said he has never been to the United States. "I went to Dubai two months ago on forged documents. My destination was England, where I wanted to find a job, but Dubai police caught me."

On Sunday, the FBI released photos, names and birth dates of the five men believed to be of Middle Eastern origin and sought the public's help tracking them down for questioning. The names of those five are Abid Noraiz Ali, Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, Mustafa Khan Owasi, Adil Pervez and Akbar Jamal.

Asghar said he doesn't know any of the people on the list.

"I was shocked when I saw my picture in the newspapers and on television channels with the name of Mustafa Khan Owasi," Asghar said.

FBI agents are expanding their dragnet for a growing list of foreign-born men they believe may have entered the United States illegally from Canada in a false ID case that has heightened terrorism fears around the New Year's holiday.

Officials cautioned they have no specific evidence the men are involved in a terrorist plot, but said the men may have connections to a fake ID and smuggling ring that involves some people with terrorist connections.

Several of the men have names or passports from countries with large terrorist presences. Pakistan, while a U.S. ally in the war against terrorism, is also home to Islamic militants, and remnants of the Taliban and al-Qaida terror network are believed to be using the western part of Pakistan as a base for attacks in neighboring Afghanistan.

 

[Zoomerang96]

ah yes, i was waiting for someone to post what sparky just did.

there is a lot of propaganda out there, and though its good the fbi is working hard on this, i really do feel theyre simply trying to come up with stuff that is actually just bogus.

i have no problem with alerts and such, in fact i think its good. but what they have to remember is, the more alerts and warrants you set out, and make it all big and glamorous, the less the public will even pay attention to it.

 

[Dreadsox]

i have no problem with alerts and such, in fact i think its good. but what they have to remember is, the more alerts and warrants you set out, and make it all big and glamorous, the less the public will even pay attention to it.

My fear as well. It's kind of like Fire Drills in school. By the time the students are seniors, they do not take them seriously.

Peace

 

[Zoomerang96]

yes, fire drills are a good example.

 

[Dreadsox]

Looks More And Morel Ike A Fire Drill

No evidence men smuggled into U.S. via Akwesasne, Chief says


Canadian Press

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A published report that five Middle Eastern men sought by the FBI may have been smuggled into the United States through the Akwesasne reserve is short on evidence, says a top reserve official.

The criticism, from Grand Chief Raymond Mitchell, was echoed by RCMP spokesman Paul Marsh, who said authorities have no evidence the men entered the U.S. through Akwesasne or anywhere else.

"We are co-operating with U.S. authorities,'' said Marsh, "but as far as I know, the idea that these five persons have been in Canada or entered the United States from Canada is totally unsubstantiated by law enforcement authorities.''

U.S. officials have cautioned they have no specific evidence the men are involved in a terrorist plot. However, they say the men may have connections to a fake ID and smuggling ring that involves some people with terrorist connections. That was enough to prompt a terrorist scare in the U.S. over the holidays.

Mitchell said Thursday that his reserve, which straddles the Ontario, Quebec and New York state borders, is being unfairly criticized despite a lack of solid evidence the men came through his territory.

"We get the blame right away, yet there's no proof they came through here,'' Mitchell said in an interview. ``I'd like to see if they have proof to back up what they're saying.''

But Mitchell acknowledged the reserve needs more money and staff to shore up border security.

Akwesasne police officers double as border security agents on the Canadian and U.S. sides of the reserve, the grand chief said.

"We do whatever we can but you're not going to catch everybody,'' he said.

A bridge connects Quebec and New York on Mohawk territory, and a second bridge runs from the nearby city of Cornwall, Ont. to the Quebec portion of the reserve. The St. Lawrence River divides the Canadian and U.S. sides.

The New York Daily News reported the reserve connection Thursday after broadcast reports a day earlier said the international hunt for the men may have started with a tip from a man sitting in a Canadian jail.

Law enforcement sources told the Daily News that smugglers operating out of Quebec may have used secret routes to avoid border crossing points. "The border up there is a sieve,'' one source told the Daily News.

CBC News and NBC News reported Wednesday that Michael John Hamdani, who has been in a Toronto jail after a massive phoney passport scheme was busted in October.

Hamdani and another man were charged with fraud in October after police in Brampton, Ont., discovered fake passports and phoney travellers' cheques.

The RCMP and officials in Solicitor General's Department refused comment on the reports that Hamdani tipped police.

In Pakistan, a jeweller has said his picture is among those of five men the FBI allege are in the United States on false passports -- even though he has never been to the United States.

An Associated Press photograph of jeweller Mohammed Asghar taken at his shop in Lahore on Wednesday closely resembles the one included on the FBI list under the name Mustafa Khan Owasi, down to a prominent mole on Asghar's left cheek.

Asghar, 30, said he was surprised to open a Pakistani newspaper and see his picture with another man's name beneath it.

Asghar said his only attempt at travelling abroad was frustrated when police in the United Arab Emirates discovered he had a forged visa. He suggested the document forgers he once patronized could have used his picture to create false travel documents for another man.

"I am a Pakistani and am living in my country but American authorities have released my picture among those who are being traced by the FBI for entering America,'' Asghar said.

"I have no links with any terrorist organization.''

The only perceivable difference between the AP and FBI photos is the man in the FBI photo is clean-shaven and shorter-haired. The FBI photo was presumably taken several months ago as part of Asghar's effort to buy a false visa.

FBI spokeswoman Angela Bell said the bureau was not able to confirm Asghar is the man in the picture and said the FBI plans to interview him in Pakistan.

Asghar acknowledged two months ago he tried to travel to Britain on forged documents. But he said immigration officials at the airport in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, detected the falsification, questioned him for nine hours, arrested him and deported him back to Pakistan.

Asked if the forgers were responsible for switching the photos, Asghar said: ``I don't know who misused my travel documents. I don't know how my picture reached the hands of the FBI.''

Asghar refused to say where, or from whom, he bought the forged documents and said he has never been to the United States.

"I went to Dubai two months ago on forged documents. My destination was England, where I wanted to find a job but Dubai police caught me.''

On Sunday, the FBI released photos, names and birth dates of five men believed to be of Middle Eastern origin and sought the public's help tracking them down for questioning. Their names are Abid Noraiz Ali, Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, Mustafa Khan Owasi, Adil Pervez and Akbar Jamal.

Asghar said he doesn't know any of the people on the list.

"I was shocked when I saw my picture in the newspapers and on television channels with the name of Mustafa Khan Owasi,'' Asghar said.

CBC said international police forces were contacted after detectives found $600,000 worth of phoney Thomas Cook and American Express travellers' cheques, fake Pakistan drivers' licences, counterfeit passports, stacks of passport photos, fakes of Canada's new permanent resident cards and printing machinery in Brampton.

Indian consulate officials were also called in after fake passports of Canada and India were seized by fraud squad officers.

Police later learned Hamdani is wanted in New York City by the FBI on forgery-related charges described in a mid-1990s arrest warrant.

The FBI said it would seek his extradition after the fraud charges were dealt with in Canada.

CTV News said Tuesday the information on the five men came from a smuggler arrested recently in Canada who told police his organization was paid a lot of money to smuggle 19 men _ including the five _ from Pakistan, to London, to Canada and then into the United States.

Earlier, the Toronto Sun, quoting police sources in Canada, said the men arrived at Toronto's Pearson International Airport about two weeks ago, claiming refugee status. They stayed in the Toronto area for several days before being smuggled into the United States by car.

"We are co-operating with the FBI in this search for these individuals,'' RCMP Staff Sgt. Andre Guertin said by phone from the force's Ottawa headquarters Wednesday.

"Obviously, we knew about these individuals before this information became public.''

Guertin refused to disclose any further details and questioned reports, such as comments by U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton that the five men entered New York state from Canada.

 

[martha]

 

[Zoomerang96]

oops, can you say backfire?

the fbi doesnt need this shit, so i dont understand why theyd release this in the first place.

like what we said in a earlier thread and your subject line says that this is a fire drill.

im not saying i want a terrorist attack (obviously), but the more they release "alerts" such as this one and nothing happens, people are going to stop paying attention all together.

 

[Dreadsox]

TO the Moderators.......

I did not mean to post a new post.
Could you please merge this, correct my typo, and place it with the thread about FBI Seeks 5 Men.

I promise I will not post any more after I have taken my Demerol.

TO the Readers.....

Sorry...I goofed.

 

[Lemonite]

I promise I will not post any more after I have taken my Demerol.

I just shit my pants..

Demerol.. Am I the only one to catch this?.. That's a funny joke.. Kinda like Cusak's joke in American Sweethearts about the Valium.

That's some original thinking there chap.

Mr. Pink