UTD sophomore faces federal gun charges following FBI arrest in WP May 15, 2007
Posted by Scarecrow in 11/27/06 UTD Mercury 1.trackback
UTD sophomore faces federal gun charges following FBI arrest in WP
Iris Kuo
Issue date: 11/27/06 Section: Web Exclusive
A UTD electrical engineering sophomore arrested Nov. 28 by Houston-based FBI agents at his Waterview Park (WP) apartment faces two federal firearm charges and a Dec. 1 detention hearing in a U.S. District Court in Dallas.
Syed Maaz Shah, 19, is charged with illegally possessing a firearm while in the United States on a non-immigrant visa, said Nancy Herrera, executive assistant in the U.S. attorney’s office for southern Texas.
The first count alleges Shah possessed an Armalite Inc. .223-caliber semiautomatic rifle Jan.13-15 in Houston. The second count alleges he possessed the same weapon March 10-11. None of the gun violations were believed to have occurred while Shah was residing in his Phase 8 WP apartment, according to a statement released by UTD President David Daniel on Nov. 29.
It is illegal for non-immigrant visa holders to possess a firearm, Herrera said. The maximum penalty for each count is 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
FBI agents discovered Shah’s alleged firearm possession while investigating two men in Houston. The two men — Kobie Diallo Williams, 33, and Adnan Babar Mirza, 29 – were arrested Nov. 28 in Houston on charges of conspiring to train with firearms to aid the Afghanistan-based Taliban.
However, Shah’s charges are not terrorism-related, said Houston FBI spokeswoman Shauna Dunlap.
“While investigating these other individuals, we came across this illegal activity,” Dunlap said. “These charges aren’t terrorism charges, but it is related to that terrorism investigation.”
Another Houston man, Shiraz Syed Qazi, was arrested in Houston the same night for illegal possession of a firearm by an alien in the same FBI investigation. Dunlap said Qazi’s charges were separate from Shah’s.
Shah’s younger brother Irbaz, a freshman who lives with him in Phase 8, said Qazi is their cousin. He said Shah also knows the other two men because they volunteered together to feed the homeless through WhyIslam, a New Jersey-based Muslim organization.
“He didn’t do anything wrong to start off with,” Irbaz said. He said their parents, who live in Nigeria, have been notified.
Irbaz said the only connection he believed his brother would have with firearms would be with friends who hunt or go to shooting ranges.
“We go hunting,” Irbaz said. He said he wasn’t sure if his brother had fired any weapons while at shooting ranges with friends.
In his guilty plea Nov. 30, Williams said he and Mirza trained at Houston-area campgrounds and shooting ranges.
Shah is a Pakistani native who has been a student at UTD since 2005. He has lived overseas for many years and also resided in Houston for 10 years, Irbaz said. He currently holds a student visa, according to UTD spokeswoman Kristine Hughes.
Shah is secretary of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) and a Student Government (SG) senator.
MSA President K.M. Ahmed Subhani said he was surprised to hear about the arrest.
“The closest I would say he’s ever been to a firearm is a paintball gun,” Subhani said.
He said Shah was an active member of the Muslim community in Dallas and Houston, where he used to reside. Subhani said Shah often volunteered for community service and had many friends in both cities.
“He’s not violent. He’s very helpful” Subhani said. “I don’t think he has any tendencies of that nature. We fully support him.”
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