LOS ANGELES, Calif.–One of three Florida men charged with supporting Pakistani terrorists waived his right to an identity hearing today in Los Angeles, but will face a bail hearing on Thursday.
In his initial federal court appearance this afternoon, Irfan Khan also waived his right to have a stamped copy of the charges presented to him.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul L. Abrams set Thursday for a hearing to determine if Khan can be released on bond to travel to Miami to face charges contained in a four-count indictment, or whether he must remain in federal custody.
Khan, 37, was arrested at a Los Angeles hotel on Saturday, according to the FBI.
Khan is among six people accused of working to funnel at least $50,000 to the Taliban in Pakistan, which violently opposes Pakistan’s government and the United States, prosecutors said.
His father and brother–Hafiz Khan, the 76-year-old imam of a Miami mosque, and 24-year-old Izhar Khan–were arrested Saturday in South Florida.
Three others, including two Khan family members, are in Pakistan and have not yet been arrested, officials said.
The indictment filed in Miami federal court charges them with conspiring to provide “material” support to terrorists, and with providing that support.
The money was allegedly designated to fund a “jihad” against the Pakistani government and to fight the United States, FBI officials said.
The Justice Department issued a statement saying that “despite being an imam, or spiritual leader, Hafiz Khan was no man of peace … He acted with others to support terrorists to further acts of murder, kidnapping and maiming.”
Wiretaps revealed by court documents filed in Miami allege a plot by Hafiz Khan and his family to pay for attacks against the Pakistani government.
He also built a school in the Taliban-dominated Swat Valley of Pakistan to provide shelter for Taliban fighters, according to the Justice Department.
