7/29/2019 Ground Zero Imam Sued

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'Ground Zero Mosque' Imam Sued for Fraud

by IPT News Feb 6, 2013 at 4:04 pm

The face of 2010's controversy over a proposed mega-mosque and community center nearGround Zero in Manhattan has been accused of defrauding donors in a lawsuit filed in New

York court this week.

Feisal Abdul Rauf and his wife Daisy Khan bought "a luxury sports car, personal real estate"

and traveled on money that was donated for specific projects at Rauf's Cordoba Initiative and

the American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA), the lawsuit says. It was filed by

Robert Leslie Deak, whose family foundation donated $167,000 to Rauf's "Shariah Index"

project from 2006-08. The money was supposed to be used for Islamic scholars to work to

reduce anti-Muslim sentiment.

In addition, the lawsuit claims, Rauf failed to report $3 million in donations from the

Malaysian government on his non-profits' tax forms and that Rauf also used the money on

personal spending. The lawsuit seeks $5 million in punitive damages.

Rauf's attorneydeniedthe allegations. This is not the first litigation between the two sides.

Rauf and Khan sued Deak and his wife in 2010, alleging the Deaks sold them a Washington,

D.C. apartment at a grossly inflated price. The apartment was to house Cordoba's national

office. But, as columnist Juan Gonzaleznotes, the sale price was $1.5 million, and Cordoba's

tax returns indicate the initiative spent $792,000 that year.

"How do you manage to pay $1.5 million for a D.C. office the same year your organization

claims it only spent half as much money in all?" Gonzalez wonders.

During the Ground Zero mosque controversy in 2010, the Investigative Project onTerrorismreportedthat other donations to ASMA and Cordoba were not listed in tax returns.

A review of IRS forms alsofoundthat ASMA secured its non-profit status in 1998 by

promising to serve as a house of worship to up to 500 people per day. But the group gave an

address of New York apartment that had no communal space and Rauf's only prayer services

took place at other mosques in New York.

ASMA also told the IRS in 1998 that it had a school "for the religious instruction of the

young," but the group's website made no reference to its operating a school.

In addition, Cordoba's application for non-profit statusclaimedthe group was not an

outgrowth of, or connected to, other organizations. That was contradicted by a2009 ASMA

financial statementthat said "ASMA is acting as a fiscal agent and is developing Cordoba's

ability to function independently."

Rauf's group never had the financing to realize its grand ambition of a $100 million mosque

and community center. The disputed location remains largely unchanged, although prayer

services do take place inside. Rauf left the mosque group in 2011.

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