Mahmoudberg
Declassified FBI documents describe the site as an ‘enclave’ and ‘communal living site’ and warn of the terrorist threat it poses.
“Mahmoudberg” is a commune in Texas run by Muslims of the Americas (MOA), which is headquartered at “Islamberg”in New York. It is led by a radical cleric in Pakistan namedSheikh Mubarak Ali Gilani.
The earliest reference to “Mahmoudberg” is a 2005 message board postingpromoting a speaking engagement in Houston with a vocalist and lecturer from the site. [1] The MOA mentioned “Mahmoudberg” in online instructions for a United Muslim Christian Forum parade in New York in 2010. The instructions have since been deleted.[2]
One of the entities connected to the site is the Texas chapter of the American Muslim Ladies Club, founded in 2010 by Sheikh Gilani and MOA. Its blog lists events at the site in 2011 using the slightly different spelling of “Mahmoudburg.” [3] Other fronts for the site include the Muslim Model Community of Texas, with which it shares an address and the First Muslims of Texas in Houston.[4]
Declassified FBI documents describe the site as an “enclave” and “communal living site” and warn of the terrorist threat it poses.[5]The FBI reports say it is seven to 10 acres large and is located in an “extremely wooded area,” but locals have estimated it to be 25 acres in size.
“The area is so rural it is quite common for residents to shoot firearms for target practice or hunting on private property without interference from law enforcement,” the FBI notes. Locals reported frequent gunfire coming from Mahmoudberg and there are photos of shell casings from the site.
The FBI reports state that two or three trailer homes moved to the commune in December 2001, but locals say their presence dates back to the late 1980s. The documents confirm that MOA has operated in Texas since that time.
One of the commune residents used to be a leader at a former MOA commune in Badger, California called “Baladullah.” The founder was convicted of masterminding a charter school scam using the commune.[6] In March 2001, one of the Baladullah members was arrested for transporting guns between New York and South Carolina. Another was charged with murdering a police deputy that caught him breaking and entering a home.[7]
On February 7, 2002 at 11-11:30 PM, one of the Mahmoudberg residents shot and killed another member. The death of Salminma Dawood, formerly known as Terrance C. Davis III, was ruled accidental because the culprit “returned gunfire to unknown individuals who were harassing the MOA commune.”
Law enforcement reported encountering a dozen African-American males at the scene, approximately five of whom lived at the commune. The investigators saw an estimated seven women and children, including a 10-month infant, who lived there.
The police were denied access to the trailer homes and were not allowed to directly interview the women, who covered their faces in the cops’ presence. Communication with the women had to be done by passing notes through a male intermediary.
Locals reported that government investigators had visited the area a few times and the commune residents refused to talk to them. According to one local, two ambulances were denied entry in 2013 until the police intervened.
A search of the Brazoria County criminal records shows that two Mahmoudberg residents were arrested in April 2013 for “interferance with public duties.”[8]
Source: Mahmoudberg
