Muthanna Al-Hanooti Espionage Case, spy for Iraqi Intelligence

Counterintelligence - Espionage - Spy Case

Name	AL-HANOOTI, Muthanna
Employer	Life for Relief and Development (LIFE/LRD), a charitable organization based in Southfield, Michigan - Focus on American and Arab Interests and Relations (FAAIR), an entity of LIFE/LRD. LIFE/LRD has tax-exempt status granted by IRS with offices in various locations across the world to include an office in Baghdad, Iraq (opened in the late 1990s). Council on American-Islamic Relations' (CAIR) Michigan branch
Dates of Employment	1994-1999, 2001-2002 & 2005-mid 2006 for LIFE/LRD, FAAIR, CAIR
Employee Type	Management, Public Relations
Job Title/Duties	Public relations coordinator and (lobbying, fund raising) for LIFE/LRD, President (FAAIR), and Executive Director (CAIR)
Military Rank
Clearance Level

Spying For	Government of Iraq under Saddam Hussein, Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS)
Codename
Spying Dates	~1999-2003
Co-conspirators	Unindicted co-conspirator - former officer of the Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS)
Methodology	Traveled to Iraq and meet in Iraq with co-conspirators who were officers of the IIS.
Possible Motivations, Problems
Finances	September 24, 2002 an intermediary through LIFE/LRD paid Al-Hanooti $24,000 for the 2002 US Congressional Delegation's travel expenses October 15, 2002 an intermediary through LIFE/LRD paid Al-Hanooti an additional $10,000 for travel expenses of the 2002 Congressional Delegation Compensation for services rendered to the Government of Iraq, including organizing and leading the 2002 Congressional Delegation, Al-Hanooti was allocated a quantity of two million barrels of oil
Identified/ Investigation
Arrest Date/Location	25 March 2008, Detroit Metropolitan Airport
Charges	Conspiring to act as an agent of the Government of Iraq under Saddam Hussein Making false statements to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigations Violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act by illegally obtaining an Iraqi oil contract
Court	US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division
Lawyers	James C. Thomas
Status

Date/Place of Birth	1960/Iraq
Citizenship	Naturalized US Citizen
Residences	Southfield, Michigan (Eastern District of Michigan)
Education
Family	Wife and three children
Other Employment
Additional Bio

Documents	Indictment: US v Al-Hanooti Search Warrant: 17300 West Ten Mile Road - In September 2006, Joint Terrorism Task Force agents launched a series of raids hunting for, among other items, any “documents and records related to the Iraqi Islamic Party, the Iraqi Accord Front, the Al-Tawafuq Front, the Islamic Relief Agency, the Islamic African Relief Agency or Human Appeal International.” 17300 West Ten Mile Road in Southfield, Michigan is LRD's headquarters. Search Warrant: 13530 Michigan Avenue #325 - This address in Dearborn, Michigan was associated with Muthanna al-Hanooti and FAAIR, which, as noted above, was allegedly "funded and controlled by LRD." Search Warrant: 5080 Abingdon Circle - This address in Ann Arbor, Michigan was associated with Mujahid al-Fayadh. Searches turned up over $133,000 in cash and Iraqi military decorations. Search Warrant: 3732 Palisades Boulevard - This address in Ypsilanti, Michigan was associated with Srood Mohammad. Search Warrant: 26300 Telegraph Road - This address in Southfield, Michigan was associated with A&A Management, which provided tax and accounting services, as well as payroll processing.
Quotes
Case Links

News:

Man accused of being Iraqi spy is released

The Dearborn Heights man accused of working for Iraqi intelligence was released from custody Thursday as Arab-American and Muslim community leaders met with federal law enforcement officials to discuss his case.At the meeting in Dearborn, local leaders said they were surprised by the federal indictment of Muthanna Al-Hanooti and stressed the importance of giving him due process. The meeting had been scheduled months ago and was not intended to focus on the arrest and indictment of Al-Hanooti, who prosecutors say worked to manipulate U.S. officials as an agent for the Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein. In return, he was given 2 million barrels of oil….(Detroit Free Press, 28 Mar 08)

Let our people go!

…Al-Hanooti is charged with brokering a fact-finding mission to Iraq in 2002 for three U.S. congressmen, who all later voted against authorizing the use of force against Iraq. The government claimed in its indictment that the trip was paid for by the Iraq Intelligence Service and that al-Hanooti received two million barrels of Iraqi oil for his services to Hussein in violation of the United Nations oil-for-food program. The indictment says al-Hanooti was an agent for Saddam Hussein's government who was paid money and oil to manipulate U.S. public and elected officials six years ago. That means he should be punished. We don't see it that way. We see a man who worked tirelessly trying to prevent a catastrophe for his homeland and for his new country…….(Arab American News, 28 Mar 08)

Charity official's arrest shocks Arab American, Muslim leaders

But federal authorities accuse the 48-year-old suburban Detroit resident of conspiring with the former regime of Saddam Hussein. Al-Hanooti was arrested Tuesday night at the airport while returning from the Middle East and charged Wednesday with setting up a 2002 junket to Iraq for three U.S. lawmakers that was secretly financed by Saddam's government. Al-Hanooti pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to act as an unregistered agent of a foreign government, illegally purchasing Iraqi oil and lying to authorities. He was released Thursday on bond.....(AP, 28 Mar 08)

NEFA "Spot Report": Muthanna al-Hanooti and Life for Relief and Development
The NEFA Foundation has released a new "Spot Report" in the wake of the March 26, 2008 indictment of Muthanna al-Hanooti, the long-time public relations coordinator for Life for Relief and Development (LRD), a charitable organization based in Southfield, Michigan. The Department of Justice alleges that in the late 1990s, the Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) "targeted LRD and...al-Hanooti to cooperate with and serve the IIS." The report provides photographic evidence of the remarkable access that LRD was able to secure to government officials, both in the U.S. and abroad…..(NEFA, 28 Mar 08)

The story behind McDermott's controversial Iraq trip

…The Seattle activist, Bert Sacks, said he was making arrangements for the trip at McDermott's request when he got the call out of the blue from a man who identified himself as a concerned Iraqi-American. Federal prosecutors believe the money was illegally funneled from Saddam's intelligence officials, through an unnamed intermediary, and to a Dearborn Heights, Mich., activist named Muthanna Al-Hanooti. The Justice Department has said McDermott and two other Democratic congressmen on the trip did not know Saddam's regime paid for it. They have not been accused of any wrongdoing…….(Seattle Times, 28 Mar 08)

Ex-CAIR chief indicted for 'Baghdad Jim' junket

The former head of the Council on American-Islamic Relations' Michigan branch was indicted yesterday for allegedly arranging a visit to Baghdad by three U.S. congressmen financed by Saddam Hussein's intelligence agency in the run-up to the war, according to federal prosecutors. Muthanna Al-Hanooti, an Iraqi-American, was rewarded with 2 million barrels of oil by Iraqi intelligence officials when he set up the controversial excursion by Democratic Reps. Jim McDermott of Washington, David Bonior of Michigan and Mike Thompson of California…Al-Hanooti joins a list of leaders of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, who have been indicted on terrorism-related charges. CAIR is a spinoff of the defunct Islamic Association for Palestine, launched by Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook and former university professor Sami al-Arian, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to provide services to Palestinian Islamic Jihad…..(World Net Daily, 28 Mar 08)

Muslim charity exec indicted as spy

A former top official with the Southfield-based Muslim charity Life for Relief and Development spied for the regime of the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and organized a 2002 congressional junket to Iraq secretly paid for by the Iraqi Intelligence Service, a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday alleges…Muthanna Al-Hanooti, 48, of Dearborn Heights received a potentially lucrative contract for the right to purchase 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil in return for his work for the Iraqi Intelligence Service, the indictment alleges. Al-Hanooti, arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Tuesday after returning from a trip to the Middle East, was led in handcuffs Wednesday into federal court in Detroit. U.S. District Judge Paul D. Borman ordered Al-Hanooti to post a $100,000 bond, surrender his passports and wear an electronic tether after government prosecutors appealed more lenient release conditions ordered by a U.S. magistrate judge…An unindicted co-conspirator in the case is a former officer of the Iraqi Intelligence Service, who asked Al-Hanooti to publicize the harmful effects of U.S. sanctions against Iraq and bring to Iraq delegations from the U.S. Congress, the indictment alleges. Between 1999 and 2002, Al-Hanooti gave Iraqi intelligence a strategy on how to get the sanctions lifted and a list of members of Congress Al-Hanooti believed wanted to lift sanctions against Iraq, the indictment alleges…..(Detroit News, 27 Mar 08)

Metro Iraqi is charged in spy case

To some local Muslims, Muthanna Al-Hanooti was a respected Iraqi-American activist, a leader and uniter trying to bridge the gap between the United States and the Middle East. But an indictment unsealed Wednesday in Detroit says he was an agent for Saddam Hussein's government who was paid money and oil to manipulate U.S. public and elected officials, including former U.S. Rep. David Bonior, D-Mt. Clemens. Federal prosecutors portray Al-Hanooti of Dearborn Heights as a man who was covertly working on behalf of Iraqi intelligence agents to help Hussein and his regime…..(Detroit Free Press, 27 Mar 08)

CAIR called 'turnstile' for terrorist suspects

….(World Net Daily, 4 Dec 07)

Exclusive Photos Show Al-Hanooti's Political Clout

Before he was alleged to have become a spy for Saddam Hussein's regime, Muthanna Al-Hanooti's charity work and political activism provided him with access to the highest echelons of government. Newsletters collected by the Investigative Project on Terrorism, some published now for the first time, show Al-Hanooti photographed with dignitaries ranging from First Lady Hillary Clinton in 1996 and Vice President Al Gore along with significant members of Congress. That may explain why Iraqi intelligence agents had confidence that Al-Hanooti would be able to persuade Congress to lift economic sanctions against Iraq. A federal indictment unsealed Wednesday accuses him of using his work with the Michigan-based Life for Relief and Development (LIFE), formerly known as the International Relief Association, Inc., to become an Iraqi agent……(IPT, 27 Mar 08)

Another Ex-CAIR Official in Legal Trouble

Add the former head of the Council on American-Islamic Relations' Michigan office to our report on CAIR officials in trouble with the law. In an indictment unsealed Wednesday, Muthanna Al-Hanooti is accused of spying for Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi government. The Detroit Free Press reports that Al-Hanooti is charged with conspiring to work for a foreign government and with making false statements to the FBI. The indictment involves Al-Hanooti's work with Life for Relief and Development (LIFE), a Muslim charity that operates in Iraq, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, and the Palestinian territories. According to the Free Press, the indictment alleges "Al-Hanooti would travel to Iraq and meet with conspirators of the Iraqi Intelligence Service. The indictment says that Al-Hanooti was rewarded with 2 million barrels of oil for his work." According to a Dec. 3, 1999 story in the Arab American News, Al-Hanooti was moving to Washington to work for CAIR. Then, a CAIR press release in June 2000 identified Al-Hanooti as executive director of its new regional office in Michigan. It isn't clear when he left the organization……(IPT, 26 Mar 08)

Indictment: US v Al-Hanooti

Federal prosecutors in Michigan indicted Muthanna al-Hanooti, the long-time former public relations coordinator for Life for Relief and Development (LRD), a charitable organization based in Southfield, Michigan, as well as the former President of Focus on American and Arab Interests and Relations (FAAIR), which "was funded and controlled by LRD." The Department of Justice alleges that in the late 1990s, the Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) "targeted LRD and...al-Hanooti to cooperate with and serve the IIS." Further, "between in or about 1999 and 2002, defendant al-Hanooti provided to the IIS a list of members of the United States Congress whom al-Hanooti believed favored lifting of the Iraqi Sanctions Regulations. Between in or about 1999 and 2002, al-Hanooti provided to the IIS a written strategy on how to obtain the lifting of the Iraqi Sanctions Regulations. Between in or about 1999 and September 2002, defendant al-Hanooti met again in Iraq with the IIS, which again requested that defendant Al-Hanooti coordinate a delegation to Iraq to include members of the United States Congress. In or about September 2002, defendant al-Hanooti helped to organize a delegation to Iraq, which included three members of the United States Congress..." Open sources report that Democratic Representatives Jim McDermott of Washington, David Bonior of Michigan and Mike Thompson of California traveled to Iraq at that time, though they reportedly were not aware of al-Hanooti's IIS ties. An IIS officer then "directed an intermediary" to pay "LRD $24,000...for the...travel expenses." For his services, Iraq allocated al-Hanooti two million barrels of oil……(NEFA, 25 Mar 08)