UPDATED
From the Astute Bloggers:
A very eye-opening development has come up in the case involving the Global Revolution Church, which betrayed Blake and Beverly Lorenz: Brian Smith, one of the heads of the church, and Omar Tarazi, the CAIR lawyer for the Bary parents, are now facing charges for embezzling and mail tampering. Among some of the details here:Perhaps the most disturbing element to the crimes committed by Brian Smith, Tom Sanchez and Jeff Parker is that they have illegally embezzled and/or misappropriated funds sent to the church from all over the country by Rifqa's supporters intended for Rifqa’s legal defense fund. The Orlando law firm overseeing her defense fund, Fowler, O'Quinn, Feeney & Sneed, confirmed this week that they have not found any records of EVER receiving any monies from Global Revolution Church sent to the church designated for Rifqa’s legal defense. I have been provided copies of checks sent to the church designated to Rifqa's defense fund, confirming that monies were in fact received, but never forwarded to Fowler, O'Quinn, Feeney & Sneed.I expect following this that Tarazi will be disbarred from law practice, and the Ohio court dealing with the case will make sure not to allow CAIR officials to represent any more cases dealt with there. As for Smith and his 2 cohorts at the church, this is truly disgraceful that people in service of the Lord were stealing people's money. It will likely deal a blow to Global Revolution Church's credibility as long as they're under the management of the Judas Three, whom I hope will spend time in prison for assisting in potentially endangering the life of a girl fleeing an abusive family.
Anyone who sent checks to the Global Revolution Church or transferred money through the church's PayPal account since August for Rifqa's defense is encouraged to contact the Orlando Police Department at 321-235-5300 (complaint desk) to report the funds missing.
The “Judas Three” are also facing federal mail tampering charges. After the trio engineered a church leadership coup and fired the Lorenzs back in September, they intercepted personal mail intended for the Lorenzs sent to the church post office box. Instead of forwarding the mail to the Lorenz’s in accordance with federal law, they sent the mail to CAIR attorney Omar Tarazi, who is representing Rifqa's parents in Ohio. Tarazi, knowing that the mail had been illegally obtained, then attempted to use this purloined correspondence to sabotage negotiations with Rifqa's legal team, making him an accessory after the fact to the Judas Three's felonious mail tampering. Additionally, Tarazi never notified postal authorities of the crime as required of an officer of the court. The mail tampering was attested to in an affidavit submitted to the Ohio court last month by Blake Lorenz (see earlier post)
UPDATE - Anonymous comments:
Would it not be reasonable to assume that this mail might include letters of support for Rifqa and the Lorenz's, and that SOME of those supporters might well be former muslims themselves or those who are planning a future escape?
And since snail mail typically includes a return address, this situation may be dangerous for more people than just Rifqa...
AOW comments:
How many of us are now on a "special" list? Ugh.
15 comments:
This is beyond upsetting. I truely fear for Rifqa's safety now more than ever.
Rifqa should be placed in witness protection outside of Ohio's jurisdiction.
Pastorius,
This is something you could almost expect to happen.
Anonymous,
I agree. This willingness to break the law in order to have their way ought to prove to the court that the Bary's and their lawyer, and CAIR itself, are malevolent in their intentions.
Damien,
You're saying you would expect a church to send money to CAIR?
Pastorius,
No, I'm saying I would almost expect someone, anyone, involved with CAIR to be dishonest.
Let me get this straight, mail sent to the Lorenz's was criminally forwarded to Cair?
Would it not be reasonable to assume that this mail might include letters of support for Rifqa and the Lorenz's, and that SOME of those supporters might well be former muslims themselves or those who are planning a future escape?
And since snail mail typically includes a return address, this situation may be dangerous for more people than just Rifqa...
Anonymous makes a very important point:
And since snail mail typically includes a return address, this situation may be dangerous for more people than just Rifqa...
How many of us are now on a "special" list? Ugh.
Anonymous,
Great point. I'll add it to the post.
OK folks--here's the scoop. Both the Florida and the Ohio courts have prohibited contact between Blake Lorenz and Rifqa. This followed the initial investigation finding that the good Pastor was involved in luring her down from Ohio. For unknown reasons, the Florida Court later also banned other members of the Lorenz family from contact.
What all this rinse and spin dry right now is about the fact that Rifqa, through her lawyer, was able to send a card with "disturbing" information to Pastor Blake after she was in Ohio. This was shared with the court. The nature of the disturbing information was not revealed, nor the method by which the information came to Ohio. Pastor Lorenz apparently knew about this (perhaps he was contacted by police investigators?) in advance of the revelation in court--because he took his own steps to discredit Mr. Smith (who had just filed an affidavit alleging that Pastor Lorenz had been informed by numerous sources that his abduction of Rifqa was illegal) by filing an affadavit in which he accused Mr. Smith of being the one who had forwarded his mail to Omar Tarazi.
Lots of unfilled blanks. Some choose to fill them in one way, some another.
Where do you get this information? And, what is your interpretation of it?
The Columbus Dispatch, January 16:
"Children Services attorney Jim Zorn has asked that communication be prohibited between Rifqa and Pastors Blake and Beverly Lorenz, the Florida pastors with whom Rifqa stayed for more than two weeks after running away.
Both sides ultimately agreed, but the Dec. 17 filing shows that Children Services was particularly concerned that Rifqa "caused a birthday card to be mailed to Blake Lorenz" around Dec. 7.
The copy that Children Services received included an envelope with the return address of one of Rifqa's attorneys, Zorn wrote.
The card "contained various statements that are of concern," he wrote. He also said the Lorenzes are the subject of a criminal investigation "regarding their part in the interference with the parents' custody of Ms. Bary.""
What I make of this is a couple of things. One is that there are some notable anti-Muslim bloggers who have garnered considerable spotlight from this case and want to keep the game going by finding new and more outrageous claims against Islam. I don't know if they are particularly in cahoots with Blake Lorenz. Jamal Jivanjee, however--a name previously unknown who has certainly gotten his share of national TV time from this--claims to be a good friend of Brian Williams--the bag man here who Lorenz paid to take Rifqa to the bus station and see that she was set up with a phone, etc. Willims probably should have known better--but just as likely he's a small time schmuck in this game who may end up saying goodby to any hope of becoming a legit minister--if that is where he was headed. And Jivanjee appears to have struck up quite the friendship with the Geller/Spencer crowd.
What do you think of CAIR receiving stolen mail/funds?
All is fair in love and ... what's that other thing?
Just one small campaign on the periphery. Not to Rifqa, to be sure, but still, a remote sideshow to the PC mindset we have IN LAW in places where our national physical security is at stake.
Like Ft Hood.
And it's follow up analysis.
And where are Hesham Islam and Stephen Coughlin today?
There is no reason to believe that CAIR has received either stolen mail or stolen funds. The letter was presented to the court by the attorney for Franklin County Children's Services. Omar Tarazi is not in the employ of CAIR. At this point, I don't think anyone knows that any funds have in fact been stolen--and I would say that there is next to no possibility at all that any funds donated to the church for Rifqa's defense were handed over to either CAIR or Tarazi. If you listen to the tape of Lorenz meeting with the court officers, it sounds as though he may have been soliciting such funds through the church without the knowledge or involvement of the folks handling the money. This would just about guarantee confusion--for all you or I know, the funds are in escrow until things can be legally sorted out.
It is, perhaps, true that technically Omar Tarazi does not work for CAIR.
However, when he meets with the parents of Rifqa Bary, they meet in the CAIR offices:
http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/2010/01/rifqa-barys-parents-cair-appointed-attorney-perjures-himself-in-motions.html
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