I mentioned this story below, but think it deserves a stand-alone post as more disturbing details come in from Memphis, Tenn. Via AP:

MEMPHIS, Tenn. A federal magistrate has ordered a University of Memphis student held until trial.

Prosecutors say F-B-I agents found an airline pilot’s uniform, a chart of Memphis International Airport and instructional D-V-D’s. One was titled “How an Airline Captain Should Look and Act.”

Mahmoud Maawad is charged with wire fraud and fraudulent use of a Social Security number.

Describing what agents found, Assistant U-S Attorney Steve Parker argued yesterday against releasing Maawad, saying the acts and circumstance of the case are “scary.”

Parker said Maawad — a 29-year-old Egyptian — has been in the country illegally since 1999 and had used a phony Social Security number to enroll in schools and open a bank account.

The Memphis Flyer has a breaking news report:

Was Mahmoud Maawad a University of Memphis student and pilot-wannabe with a passion for flying small planes or an Arab terrorist looking to duplicate the suicide missions of 9/11?

Federal prosecutors in Memphis aren’t saying, but on Thursday they asked a U.S. magistrate to hold Maawad, 29, whose email logon is “pilot747,” without bond until trial. U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Thomas Anderson agreed with Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Parker, and Maaward becomes the second Memphis resident of Arab descent to be held without bond because of investigations by the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force. In April, Rafat Mawlawi was jailed in a separate investigation in which prosecutors have linked him to Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaida. He is awaiting trial on October 3rd.

More:

Maawad was busted again this week after federal agents searched his apartment and computer on September 9th and examined his Internet purchases of flight instructions and pilot paraphernalia. Since June, Maawad ordered $3,300 of merchandise over the Internet from Speedy’s Pilot Shop in San Diego, including a private pilot course, flight simulator software, a flight gear bag, several DVDs, a $239 Navy leather flight jacket, a $19.95 DVD on “How an Airline Captain Should Look and Act,” and instructional programs on “airplane talk.” His email address was pilot747_200@hotmail.com.

After purchasing approximately $2,500 worth of merchandise, Maawad’s debit card was rejected by Speedy’s for lack of funds and his last three orders were not filled. Agents are in the process of examining his computer hard drive.

comments (0)   trackbacks (1)