Why did the FBI scoop up the CAIR records?

 

The Iconoclast Wednesday, 25 November 2009 Why did the FBI scoop up the CAIR records? by Jerry Gordon World Net Daily has a tantalizing report on the plaintiffs in the CAIR suit against Muslim Mafia  co-author David Gaubatz and his son Chris.  The FBI served a warrant on the Washington, DC law firm of Cozen O'Connor defending the Gaubatz father and son   seeking possession of thousands of pages and videos, just as the law firm was packing up the records obtained in the CAIR investigation by the Gaubatzes. Note what WND says in their report, "FBI swoops in to halt return of 'Muslim Mafia' documents,"  About this development: The FBI agents entered the capital law offices of Cozen O'Connor tonight and issued a warrant for thousands of pages of documents as well as audio and video recordings gathered by P. David Gaubatz and his son Chris in a daring and lengthy undercover penetration of CAIR in which the younger Gaubatz served as an unpaid intern for the group that was labeled an unindicted terrorist co-conspirator in last year's Holy Land Foundation trial. CAIR claimed in a lawsuit that Gaubatz removed its papers and made recordings of employees "without any consent or authorization and in violation of his contractual fiduciary and other legal obligations." A federal judge in Washington issued a restraining order Nov. 3 barring the Gaubatzes from further use or publication of the material – 12,000 pages of documents along with audio and video recordings – and demanding that they return it to the Muslim group's lawyers. However, last night the FBI stepped in with a warrant, suggesting the agency wants to see the papers and examine the recordings as part of its interest in CAIR and its Hamas terrorist links, including those involving its founding chairman and acting executive director. In fact, adds Farah, "I would say the nature of this warrant and the way it was served strongly suggests the FBI doesn't want these documents returned to CAIR – where they were destined to be destroyed in the first place. We have always believed, as the Gaubatzes did, that there is valuable evidence here vital to the nation's security." The FBI's grand-jury subpoena is intended to preserve the status quo and not intended to require the Gaubatzes' legal counsel to turn over the documents immediately – or before notifying Judge Kollar-Kotelly. CAIR contends the documents were stolen. David Gaubatz insists the research described in his book, including securing the documents, "was conducted professionally and legally" in cooperation with law enforcement officials. Much of the relevant material is already in the hands of the FBI, he said. The Gaubatzes are being represented by high-profile First Amendment specialist Martin Garbus, most famous for representing Daniel Ellsberg in the Pentagon Papers case. Garbus is teamed with Bernard Grimm of Cozen O'Connor in Washington and Daniel Horowitz in the San Francisco Bay area. Horowitz, a frequent TV legal analyst, represented talk-radio host Michael Savage in his lawsuit against CAIR. Grimm also is a regular commentator on the Fox News Channel, CNN and Court TV. We can speculate several reasons that the FBI might obtain this want for seizure of the CAIR investigation.  Among the more plausible scenarios based on the evidence presented by Gaubatz in both Muslim Mafia and articles in the NER-see here and here. Protection of any untoward disclosures concerning programs that local and national FBI units have been involved in with CAIR-sponsored diversity training; To determine if there was any evidence about CAIR, a Muslim Brotherhood front, infiltrating federal and local government counter terrorism and homeland security programs; To identify foreign sources funding  CAIR national and regional offices in violation of foreign agency registration requirements; Investigation of allegations about abuse of Internal Revenue guidelines  barring 501 c3 tax exempt organizations from lobbying  that typically requires a separate filing under section 501 c4; and, Investigation of possible criminal fraud allegations raised by Gaubatz and Sperry in Muslim Mafia, about CAIR leaders and staff that might provide a basis for a RICO suit on corruption charges. You may recall that in the wake of the convictions in the Dallas Federal Holy Land Foundation trial, that the FBI back peddled so fast it made you head spin. The national office sent out advisories to local and regional offices to distance them from CAIR.  The WorldNetDaily article notes: The FBI cut off ties to CAIR in January after the group was named an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation case in Texas, the largest terrorism-finance case in U.S. history. Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer of New York and other senators have called for a government-wide ban on CAIR. So, CAIR's counsel and the federal judge who ordered return of the documents obtained by the Gaubatz, father and son have been headed off at the legal pass by the FBI.  Let us see what develops.