Madrid case leads to lawyer in Oregon

The Oregonian ^ | May 7, 2004 | Noelle Crombie and Mark Larrabee

[Grampa Dave]

"News reports last night had Nelson as a good friend but said he would not represent Mayfield."

Wasn't one of Nelson's first comments last night that he barely knew this Johnny Jihad. That basically the only contact was a phone conversation from Johnny Jihad asking advise about law school years ago?

[Grampa Dave]

I do really well until some relative calls and wants to talk, then it all goes to hell.

[Sacajaweau]

It's hard to explain a philosophy within a philosophy. I have some old literary material on this and Mohammed the Prophet was a murderous, dreamer with hopes of conquering the world.

And his dream called for everyone to be a Muslim, i.e., all people under one control....His!! He would go after the leaders of other Muslim tribes, i.e., kill other Muslims in an attempt to be the sole ruling tribe. And when we speak of a Muslim country, we mean one where the Laws of Religion are the Countries Law, i.e., there is absolutely no separation of church and state. It's here that you can vividly see our reasoning for the separation of church and state but with a difference. We tolerate different religions (but don't have to except them as our own) whereas many Muslims retain the "kill the Christians and Jews" (unless they convert) which means either come under the rule of Islamic Law or we will kill you.

Another part of their Law says 4 wives which propogates more poor, future soldiers (the birth of a girl is frowned on).

This is from "old writings" circa 1850 but you can see how much has been retained BY MANY and how their population has grown. It's brainwashing and keeping them poor....Hitler tactics. Hitler promised his people the world and gave them hell.

[countess]

From your KGW report...Her husband was honorably discharged in 1994, after a shoulder injury, she said.

I wonder if this guy has a medical disability retirement, and draws a monthly check from the VA. Would have gotten help for law school expenses, too, if that's the case. Just guessing. Officers aren't "discharged", are they? I thought they resigned their commission. I hate ambiguous reporting.

[Sacajaweau]

Yes, and what was said made absolutely no sense.

I thought I read that Nelson was representing some Iraqi prisoners and/or was on TV and the FBI indicated that Mayfield somehow told them to call Nelson...something like that. I read it in one of the earliest articles on this.

[Sacajaweau]

My mailman doesn't knock on MY door. Expecting a SPECIAL DELIVERY from Spain, Mona?

[cyncooper]

I thought Nelson and Mayfield hadn't had contact since '94 or '95. It's hearsay!!

See posts on this thread where some of us note that articles quoting Nelson last night had him saying he was Mayfield's "friend and mentor" and complaining he hadn't had a chance to speak with Mayfield before the charges aired. I doubt the "no contact since '94 or '95" angle.

[blam]

"Wasn't one of Nelson's first comments last night that he barely knew this Johnny Jihad. That basically the only contact was a phone conversation from Johnny Jihad asking advise about law school years ago?"

I remember seeing comments to the effect that he wouldn't even represent his own friend. Could be wrong...I guess.(?)

[Sacajaweau]

And she said "We". Me thinks she'll be sitting right next to hubby very soon.

[Grampa Dave]

That comment came out later.

Nelson probably ran a credit check on Johnny Jihad and realized it would be a pro bono job. So he opted out.

[cyncooper]

Here is the article we saw last night:

Friends, Family Defend Portland Lawyer

Excerpt:

Portland attorney Thomas Nelson described himself as Mayfield's friend and mentor. He called Mayfield a regular, run-of-the-mill guy.

Nelson said Mayfield will be represented by a public defender.

[blam]

"Here is the article we saw last night:"

Yup, that's it. Thanks.

[aposiopetic]

Now I realize that I read it in the posted article:

He said he came to be Mayfield's attorney Thursday after a call from Charles Gorder, an assistant U.S. attorney. Nelson said that he was on television in an unrelated matter Wednesday night and that Mayfield had seen the program and asked for him.

But before he could speak to his client, Nelson said, he was getting calls from a Newsweek magazine reporter about the case. He said he's outraged.

So The Oregonian had Nelson as Mayfield's attorney.

Then there's the following from an AP story in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Portland attorney Tom Nelson, who described himself as a mentor, said he received a call Thursday from Mayfield asking for help.

"His wife was in tears because of the way the search was conducted. The FBI apparently hurt things in the house, left things in disarray," Nelson told reporters outside Mayfield's home. "He is a regular, run-of-the-mill guy."

Nelson said Mayfield had never traveled to Spain.

"Obviously, the government holds all the cards in these kinds of situations," Nelson told ABC's "Good Morning America" Friday. "It can release any kind of information it thinks it wants to release and the other side is prohibited to speaking on the merits, so I can't speak to the merits."

"He's in no position to, say, do forensic tests of his own" on the alleged fingerprints, Nelson added. He said he was speaking as a friend and was not acting as Mayfield's legal counsel.

Hard to figure out what the truth is here.

[cyncooper]

Very hard. I didn't know Nelson appeared this morning on GMA...I was focused on the Rumsfeld hearings.

Keep up the good work. This is a very interesting story.

[aposiopetic]

Thanks to you and to all other contributing Freepers for the input.

[Sacajaweau]

This might be what I was looking for. It is at sacbee.com

May 3, 2004

Portland, Ore. (AP) - A Canadian civilian who claims he was falsely imprisoned, tortured and injured by Army interrogators (Camp Bucca)shortly after the invasion of Iraq is suing the Army for $350,000.

Attorney Thomas Nelson said he filed the suit with the U.S. Army Claims Office on April 30 on behalf Hossam Shaltout, 57, of Los Angeles.

IPlease read this. think this might be the same Nelson and fits the earliest report of Nelson being on TV about the same time they picked up Mayfield.

[ValerieUSA]

Here is a recent update on the Madrid investigation:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3597885.stm

Timeline: Madrid investigation

Spain has detained and provisionally charged several suspects in connection with the 11 March train bombings in Madrid, many of them Moroccan.
Four suspects died during a police raid on 3 April, including the alleged ringleader, Serhane ben Abdelmajid Fakhet, alias "The Tunisian", the interior ministry said.

BBC News Online tracks the key developments in the investigation:


11 March: Ten bombs explode on four packed early-morning commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191 people and leaving at least 1,800 injured.

Police also carry out controlled explosions on three other unexploded devices, which were hidden in rucksacks.

In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, the Spanish government names the Basque separatist group Eta as the main suspect. But evidence simultaneously emerges that Islamic militants might be behind the attacks.

The evidence includes the discovery of a stolen van containing seven detonators and an Arabic language tape close to a Madrid station.

A letter sent to a London-based Arabic newspaper claims responsibility for the attacks on behalf of the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, a group that aligns itself to Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network. The accuracy of the claim cannot be verified.

13 March: Five men are arrested in connection with a mobile phone found inside a bag of explosives which failed to go off. They are three Moroccans and two Indians. One of the Moroccans is named as Jamal Zougam, who is alleged to have links with the suspected leader of an al-Qaeda cell in Spain.

14 March: A video claiming responsibility for the attack purporting to be from al-Qaeda's military spokesman in Europe is uncovered. The speaker says the attacks were revenge for Spain's "collaboration with the criminals Bush and his allies".

Spain's Socialist Party wins a surprise victory in the country's general election, after voters appear to turn on the government over its handling of the Madrid attacks.

15 March: The man set to be the new prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, condemns the war in Iraq and threatens to pull Spanish troops out of the country.

18 March: Five men are arrested over the Madrid attacks - four Moroccans and a Spaniard. One of the Moroccans is freed without charge a few days later.

19 March: The five men arrested two days after the attacks are remanded in custody. They are:


Moroccans Jamal Zougam, Mohamed Bekkali and Mohamed Chaoui, who are provisionally charged with multiple counts of murder, attempted murder, stealing a vehicle, belonging to a terrorist organisation and four counts of carrying out terrorist acts.

Two Indian nationals Vinay Kohly and Suresh Kumar, held on suspicion of collaborating with a terrorist organisation, of fraud and of falsifying documents.
20-21 March: More suspects arrested in separate raids. They include a two Moroccan men and a Moroccan woman.

23 March: Four men arrested on 18 March are remanded in custody. They are:


Spaniard Jose Emilio Suarez Trashorras, accused of supplying the explosives for the attacks and facing charges of multiple counts of murder, as well as attempted murder, robbery and terrorism charges.

Moroccan Abderrahim Zbakh, accused of multiple murders and attempted murders, robbery and collaborating or belonging to a terrorist organisation.

Moroccans Mohamed El Hadi Chedadi and Abdelouahid Berrak, facing charges of collaborating with or belonging to a terrorist organisation.
Another Moroccan man who was being held is freed without charge.

The same day, another Moroccan man is arrested over the Madrid blasts.

24 March: Syrian man arrested.

Two more suspects are provisionally charged with collaborating with a terrorist group - a Moroccan man, Rafa Zuher, and the only woman suspect so far, Naima Oulad Akcha, also Moroccan.

26 March: Another suspect, Moroccan Faisal Alluch is provisionally charged with collaborating with a terrorist group.

30 March: Spain names an Islamist extremist group, the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, as the main focus of the Madrid investigation.

Provisional charges are laid against two more suspects held in detention. They are:


Syrian Basel Ghayoun, accused of mass murder and belonging to a terrorist organisation.

Moroccan Hamid Ahmidam, accused of collaborating with a terrorist organisation.
Spanish police also arrest a Moroccan man, Otman El Gnaout.

31 March: Spain issues international arrest warrants for five Moroccans and a Tunisian, identified as Sarhane ben Abdelmajid Fakhet and described as the leader of the group suspected of carrying out the Madrid attacks.

2 April: An unexploded bomb is found on the high-speed rail link between Madrid and Seville. Tests later show that the explosives matched the type used in the 11 March attacks.

Provisional charges are laid against a 15th suspect. Moroccan man Otman El Gnaout is accused of collaboration with or membership of a terrorist organisation.


3 April: Four suspects wanted for the Madrid train bomb attacks die during a police raid on an apartment in Leganes, a suburb of Madrid, the interior ministry says.

Among the dead is the alleged ringleader of the Madrid bombings, Sarhane ben Abdelmajid Fakhet, a Tunisian named in the international arrest warrants, the authorities say.

Another of those killed is identified as Abdennabi Kounjaa, a Moroccan also named in the arrest warrants, Spain says.

A third man is named as Arrisse Rifat Anouar.

One police officer is killed and at least 11 injured.

5 April:

Officials announce two more arrests - one in Madrid, the other in Ceuta.

Police examine a fax threatening to "make blood flow like rivers" if Spanish troops remain in Iraq and Afghanistan. The fax comes from a group claiming both the 11 March bombings and the foiled attack on the Madrid-Seville rail link.

7 April:

Two Moroccans are detained and provisionally charged with terrorism offences. Rachid Adli is arrested near Madrid, and is reported to have admitted meeting Jamal Zougam, one of the key suspects in custody.

The other Moroccan, Abdelilah el Fuad, is arrested in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa. Spanish media said he had been at a house where the bombers are believed to have prepared the devices and activated the mobile phones that triggered the train explosions. Mr Fuad is also said to have bought a car used to go to Asturias to collect explosives for the 11 March attacks.

12 April:

Three more suspects arrested: Fouad el Mourabit, a Moroccan, is provisionally charged with collaborating with terrorists. The other two suspects are not named.

16 April:

Spanish police arrest three more suspects, reportedly from Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Their names are not released.

26 April:

The interior ministry issues five new arrest warrants - and the pictures of the suspects wanted in connection with the attacks.

Their names are: Mohamed Afalah, Mohamed Belhadj, Abdelmajid Bouchar, Mohamed Bouharrat and Hicham Ahmidan. Their nationalities were not given.

Earlier in the day, a Spanish magistrate investigating the bombings ordered two Moroccan brothers, Abdennabid and Mohamed Cheddadi, to be freed.

But he ordered the brothers to keep the court informed of their whereabouts, a court official said.

[ValerieUSA]

That was last updated April 28, 2004

[cyncooper]

It is the same guy. Nelson and that client were on Hardball with Chris Matthews Wednesday night peddling the tale about prison abuse.

[ValerieUSA]

http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/WireFeed/WireFeed&c=WireFeed&cid=1083163095378&p=1014232938216

Fingerprint led to U.S. Madrid bombing suspect
By Daniel Trotta
(Reuters) - May 7 2004 17:56

MADRID (Reuters) - An American lawyer arrested in the United States is being held as a suspect in the Madrid train bombings after investigators found a fingerprint on a bag linked to the bombers, according to Spanish police sources.

Investigators found the bag containing detonators in a van outside a station where the bombers were believed to have boarded trains before the March 11 attacks.

When no match for the single fingerprint was found in Spain, police distributed it abroad, including to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), a Spanish Interior Ministry spokesman said on Friday.

Brandon Mayfield, a convert to Islam who married an Egyptian woman, would be the first American implicated in the case. U.S. officials have yet to confirm the arrest, which was reported by Mayfield's brother and Spanish officials after Newsweek magazine broke the story.

Spanish police sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the FBI had found more evidence in the fingerprint than had the investigators in Spain.

The FBI discovered 15 points of similarity between the fingerprint on the bag and Mayfield's corresponding finger, but police in Spain found only eight points of similarity, the Spanish police sources said.

Several other unidentified fingerprints also were found on that bag, the sources said.

There is no international standard for the number of points of identification required for a match between two fingerprints, according to CrimTrac, an Australian agency that assists police.

FBI MUM ON ARREST

An FBI spokeswoman refused to confirm or deny the detention, saying only that two search warrants had been issued in connection with an unspecified investigation.

Newsweek said the lawyer had done child custody work for one of six Oregon Muslims convicted last year of trying to travel to Afghanistan to help al Qaeda -- the network blamed for the Madrid bombings and the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.

The magazine quoted sources as saying the lawyer had been under FBI surveillance for some time and was being held as a "material witness" in a grand jury investigation.

That allowed the U.S. Justice Department to hold him in secret without formally filing charges.

A Justice Department spokesman declined comment.

ISLAMIST MILITANTS SUSPECTED

Ten bombs exploded on four packed commuter trains at the morning rush hour in Madrid on March 11, killing 191 people and wounding 1,900.

Spanish authorities have blamed the bombings on Islamist militants taking revenge on Spain, in the name of al Qaeda, for sending troops to Iraq and Afghanistan.

A Spanish judge has accused 15 people including 13 Moroccans in the case. All but three are in jail. Seven other prime suspects blew themselves up when surrounded by police.

Mayfield, a former U.S. Army officer, was critical of the foreign policy of President George W. Bush's administration, his brother said.

Reached at his home in Halstead, Kansas, Kent Mayfield told Reuters on Thursday: "I can swear up and down my brother has no connection to terrorist attacks."