Jamaat ul-Fuqra Commune
Red House, VA
Jamaat ul-Fuqra
An estimated 200 people live at this commune as members of the Sunni militant group Jamaat ul-Fuqra. [1] The group's leader, Pakistani Sheik Mubarik Ali Gilani, founded the ul-Fuqra linked non-profit Muslims of America in 1980. [2] Gilani left the United States for Pakistan in 1993. [3] A 2001 State Department report notes that "members [of Jamaat ul-Fuqra] have purchased isolated rural compounds in North America to live communally, practice their faith, and insulate themselves from Western culture."[4]
James D. Williams, an ul-Fuqra member, was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder of an Arizona Muslim imam Rashad Khalifa in October 1993.[5] After Williams' conviction he escaped and was not arrested until 2000 in Lynchburg, Virginia. [6] He was sentenced to 69 years in March 2001. Williams was living at the Red House compound at the time of his arrest in Virginia in 2000. [7] The evidence used to convict Williams consisted primarily of documents found during a police search of a storage locker in Colorado Springs which turned up a written plan to murder Khalifa. The written plan was strikingly similar to the actual events which resulted in Khalifa's murder. [8]
Though Williams was not convicted of a crime regarding this matter, a Colorado Attorney General press release on Williams' sentencing noted that additional evidence was found in the Colorado Springs locker linking Williams to the 1984 firebombing of a Hare Krishna temple in Denver, Colorado. The items included photos taken before the explosion, a written report of the bombing and explosive devices which matched the ones used in the Denver bombing. [9]
Vincente Pierre, another Red House Muslim, was convicted in 2001 of two felony firearms violations.[10] During a detention hearing for Pierre a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent described Jamaat ul-Fuqra as a violent, "black Muslim extremist sect that acts out jihad against perceived enemies." [11]
[1] Jerry Seper and Steve Miller, "Sniper suspects may be followers; Ties sough to militant Muslim group Jamaat ul-Fuqra," The Washington Times, November 13, 2002, pg. A10.
[2] Jerry Seper and Steve Miller, "Sniper suspects may be followers; Ties sough to militant Muslim group Jamaat ul-Fuqra," The Washington Times, November 13, 2002, pg. A10.
[3] Jerry Seper and Steve Miller, "Sniper suspects may be followers; Ties sough to militant Muslim group Jamaat ul-Fuqra," The Washington Times, November 13, 2002, pg. A10.
[4] "Patterns of Global Terrorism, 1999" U.S. Department of State, April 2000, pg. 120.
[5] Press Release, Colorado Office of the Attorney General, "Attorney General Salazar Announces 69 Year Sentence for "Fuqra" Defendant Convicted of Racketeering And Conspiracy To Commit Murder," March 16, 2001.
[6] Press Release, Colorado Office of the Attorney General, "Attorney General Salazar Announces 69 Year Sentence for "Fuqra" Defendant Convicted of Racketeering And Conspiracy To Commit Murder," March 16, 2001.
[7] Mira L. Boland, "Sheikh Gilani's American Disciples; What to make of the Islamic compounds across America affiliated with the Pakistani radical group Jamaat ul-Fuqra?" The Weekly Standard, Vol.7, No26, March 18, 2002, pg 29.
[8] Press Release, Colorado Office of the Attorney General, "Attorney General Salazar Announces 69 Year Sentence for "Fuqra" Defendant Convicted of Racketeering And Conspiracy To Commit Murder," March 16, 2001.
[9] [see this footnote for entire paragraph] Press Release, Colorado Office of the Attorney General, "Attorney General Salazar Announces 69 Year Sentence for "Fuqra" Defendant Convicted of Racketeering And Conspiracy To Commit Murder," March 16, 2001.
[10]USA v. Pierre, 6:01-CR-70081-NKM-1, "Jury Verdict," (WD Va. September 30, 2001). ; Jerry Seper and Steve Miller, "Militant Muslims seek Virginia base; Group abandons communes in West," The Washington Times, July 1, 2002, pg.A1.
[11] Jerry Seper and Steve Miller, "Militant Muslims seek Virginia base; Group abandons communes in West," The Washington Times, July 1, 2002, pg.A1.
