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Aug. 15, 2006, 12:37AM
3 Dallas-area suspects known to resell phones
In Michigan, FBI says nothing indicates men have terror links
By THOMAS KOROSEC
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Dallas Bureau
DALLAS — The three Dallas-area men arrested in Michigan on state terrorism charges are well-known to cell phone wholesale and retail shops here, where managers said Monday they are part of a brisk trade in buying phones from Wal-Mart and other discount stores and reselling them to smaller shops.
In Michigan, meanwhile, the FBI said it has no information to indicate that the three Palestinian-Americans arrested with about 1,000 cell phones in their van on Friday had any connections to terrorism.
And, in an unrelated case, an Ohio prosecutor said he didn't have enough evidence to present felony terrorism charges against two Michigan men also arrested with a number of cell phones in their car.
In the Michigan case, the FBI said in a news release that there is no imminent threat to the 5-mile-long Mackinac Bridge, which has been the subject of increased patrols after local Michigan authorities said they believed the men were targeting the bridge. Images of the bridge were found on a digital camera belonging to the men, the FBI said.
Adham Othman, 21, his brother, Louai Othman, 23, and their cousin, Maruan Muhareb, 18, all from Mesquite, were stopped outside a Wal-Mart Store in Caro, about 80 miles north of Detroit in an agricultural region, after employees became suspicious over their purchase of 80 cell phones.
"For these guys, there is a lot of margin in these," said Sean Mobh, manager of Wireless Stop, a cell phone store on Harry Hines Boulevard in northwest Dallas. "There is a phone that they buy from Wal-Mart for 20 bucks and sell for $38."
Resale profit
Mobh said the group has come in "three or four" times in the last three months and he made one purchase of about 100 phones. They would usually sell prepaid TracFones, like the kind they were found with in Michigan, because Wal-Mart's discounts on them are so deep that they can make a nice resale profit.
"One trip and that's about $6,000 each minus gas and expenses," he said.
Mobh said the three men are among dozens of individuals in the competitive market of buying goods from Wal-Mart and other deep discounters and reselling them to other stores that mark them up and sell them retail or wholesale.
Mobh said he resells the phones in bulk in higher-priced markets such as New York or Los Angeles, or ships them abroad.
Wal-Marts in Dallas and other cities often are sold out of the most popular phones because of all the resellers about, so entrepreneurial types such as the Othman brothers and their cousin will travel long distances to find stores with inventory, several shopkeepers said.
"It looks like a case of these guys being in the wrong place at the wrong time," said Mobh.
Another manager, a Pakistani-American who declined to give his name, pointed to his dark skin and said, "It's this, too."
'Weren't up to anything'
Across the street, at Wireless Way, a shop owner who did not want to be quoted by name said, "These guys are known up and down this street, all over here. I would swear to God and my children that they weren't up to anything."
He said he bought at least three shipments of phones, totaling perhaps 400, from the three men in the last several months.
Prepaid phones require no contract and are programmed with prepaid minutes, making them popular with people with no phone service and with immigrants who want to call home.
Because they are difficult to track, they are also popular with criminals and terrorists, law enforcement officials say.
Intentions not clear
Local authorities in Caro have not said what they believe the men intended to do with the phones and have declined to spell out what probable cause they have indicating the three were involved in terrorism.
Louai Othman told a magistrate judge after his arrest, "All we did is buy the phone to sell and make money."
The men are each being held on $750,000 bail and are charged with providing material support for terrorist acts and terrorism surveillance of a vulnerable target. A district court magistrate has set a pretrial hearing for Friday and examining hearing for Aug. 24. | 
