Document text
Sections Home Page Local News AP News AP Entertainment Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Holiday Guide Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend March 22, 2006 Fugitive’s lawyer suspects search Defense attorney in the investigation of an Ashland charity says his office was entered By WILLIAM McCALL The Associated Press PORTLAND — The attorney representing a fugitive Saudi national accused of tax fraud and money laundering involving an Ashland-based Islamic charity said Tuesday he believes his office was secretly searched as part of an international terrorism investigation. Tom Nelson, who represents Soliman al-Buthe, has already filed a complaint alleging that phone calls and e-mails between al-Buthe and his other lawyers were illegally intercepted by the government. Al-Buthe and Ashland activist Pete Seda were directors of the Ashland chapter of Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation Inc., which was designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. government in 2004. Both men are wanted on felony charges for allegedly taking a $150,000 chapter donation and smuggling the money to Saudi Arabia in 2000 without reporting it to federal authorities and for allegedly lying about it on a chapter tax return. Nelson said he believes that someone posing as a janitor entered his Portland office after hours because he found his computer had been rebooted and papers appeared to have been moved around. Advertisement Another attorney who shares office space with Nelson says he was sleeping on a couch at the office early one morning last May when a man dressed as a custodian tried to enter Nelson’s office. "There’s no question that somebody was in there and it was outside the normal bounds of official procedure," said Nelson. Nelson said he sent a letter to U.S. Attorney Karin Immergut last September to inform her of his concerns that his office and his home "have been the target of clandestine searches" and asking her to investigate. Nelson said he was concerned the searches were conducted without a warrant and without the approval of a judge. "This isn’t an issue of whether the government has the right to do investigations," Nelson said. "Clearly it does and should. The issue is whether it does it without any judicial supervision." Immergut said Tuesday she sent Nelson a letter in October reassuring him "that before we undertake a search of an attorney’s office we have to jump through a lot of hoops, and it’s only under the most exceptional circumstances." But she said as a matter of policy she cannot confirm or deny whether somebody is subject to a clandestine search "unless the court agrees to inform the person." Otherwise, she said, "it puts me in an untenable position." Nelson followed up with another letter in January after media reports of National Security Agency eavesdropping on U.S. citizens authorized by President Bush. Nelson also wrote the NSA and received a letter from the NSA in January that said: "Rest assured that safeguards are in place to protect the civil liberties of U.S. citizens. "However, because of the highly classified nature of the program, we can neither confirm nor deny the existence of records responsive to your request." Immergut said Tuesday that prosecutors take their duty to protect the right of other lawyers to privileged communications with their clients very seriously "because we don’t want to have a chilling effect on attorney-client relationships." Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Men's Clothing Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Discount Hotel Reservations Send Flowers Casinos Canada Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Trunks, Footlocker Online poker at AbsolutePoker.com Advertisement s