Feds Indict 7 in Texas Terror Probe

Feds Indict 7 in Texas Terror Probe

by Angela K. Brown
The Associated Press Writer
December 18, 2002

DALLAS - The leader of an Islamic militant group, his wife, and five brothers who work at a Texas computer firm were indicted on charges of trafficking with terrorist states Libya and Syria, Attorney General John Ashcroft (news - web sites) announced Wednesday.

"We will pursue the financiers of terror as aggressively as we pursue the thugs who do their dirty work," Ashcroft said at a news conference at the Justice Department.

Earlier, four of the brothers were arrested in Texas by federal anti-terrorism agents. The fifth brother was already in custody. The brothers worked at Infocom, a computer company in Richardson, Texas, a suburb of Dallas.

Ashcroft said the indictments named Mousa Abu Marzook, a Hamas leader and his wife, both believed to be in the Middle East.

The four brothers arrested were company Vice President Ghassan Elashi, 48, who was also identified as a director of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, which was shut down in December 2001 after the Treasury Department (news - web sites) accused the self-described charity of being a Hamas front and seized its assets.

Also arrested were Bayan Elashi, 47, Basman Elashi and Hazim Elashi, 41.

"The war against terror is a war of accountants and auditors as well as weaponry and soldiers," Ashcroft said. "We will pursue the financiers of terror as well as pursue the thugs who do their work."

Ashcroft characterized Marzook as a senior member of the Palestinian militant group. He said Marzook and his wife were accused of conspiring to violate U.S. laws that prohibit dealing in terrorist funds.

The four brothers who were arrested Wednesday and the fifth brother were charged with selling computers and computer parts to Libya and Syria, both designated by the United States government as state sponsors of terrorism.

The 33-count indictment accuses the group of illegal exports to Syria and Libya, money laundering, dealing in the property of a designated terrorist and making false statements, Ashcroft said.

The attorney general said that the defendants could received up to 45 years each in prison if convicted, and were also subject to possible fines up to $7.2 million.

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