A Peek Into Islamist Banking in the United States
By Douglas Farah
The Wall Street Journal has a fascinating story (viewable for free for a few days) on the criminal tax investigation launched by the Justice Department into the activities of one of the largest Islamist banking entities-Dar al-Maal Al- Islami Trust (DMI). (Co-Editor's Note: The story is now available as an Acrobat file in the CT Library with express permission by the WSJ and with our appreciation.)
The case centers on investments made through a company called Overland Capital Group Inc. Two of Overland's offices in Boston were searched last week by IRS officials, according filings by federal prosecutors.
No one has been charged with any offense and the search warrant remains under seal. What is interesting is that the motion disclosing the investigation was filed by a prosecutor from the DOJ's Counterterrorism division.
Might this be the Al Capone method of getting at opaque Islamist financial structures in the United States?
As is often the case with Islamic banking institutions, the route to DMI is circuitous and not designed to be easily followed. DMI was founded in 1981 by the Arab Gulf elite as an Islamist alternative to the Western banking system. My full blog is here.
TrackBack
