Radical Islamic Extremism has existed for decades in various nations around the globe. Certainly since 9/11 it has become the focal point of American security at home and abroad. We generally relate Islamic terrorists with foreigners in far away lands. Seldom do we consider the tens of thousands of urban terrorists right here in our nation. They have plagued our streets in both city and rural communities. They have decimated neighborhoods by way of their criminal enterprises and violent behaviors. And many of these urban terrorists, also known as criminal street gang members, are following the religious aspects of their respective organizations.
I experienced radical Islamic extremism by way of criminal street gangs during my career as a law enforcement officer. As an example I will relate a case I investigated in Danville, Il in 2007. The Danville branch of the Black P Stones, which evolved into the Masjid Al Ka'bah, conspired with other street gangs to murder Danville Police Officers. This branch of the Masjid Al Ka'bah operated under Proclamation One.
Once law enforcement became aware of the hits an intense but short lived campaign to disrupt the plans of the gangs commenced. Weapons, drugs and other contraband were recovered during this shake up but no one was brought to justice for the solicitation of murder for hire.
Myself along with other members of my unit set out to bring those responsible for the planned attacks to justice. We engaged in an intense intelligence gathering campaign. Our efforts were fruitful and much information was obtained which corroborated the initial allegations. Despite this, however, the brass at the Danville Police Department refused to acknowledge that the threats on the officers were real. Upper command officers could not wrap their minds around the fact that heinous acts such as murdering police officers could actually be carried out in Danville, by street gangs.
My team and I along with my gang trainer and mentor went to work building the case. Suspects were developed and, it just so happened, that one of the primary conspirators was also suspected of committing a triple homicide in Danville. And he was a member of the Masjid Al Ka'bah.
This is when things really started to get messy. I took the case to our State's Attorney and he, along with his first assistant, were not interested in prosecuting gangsters on "just a conspiracy". When I contacted the Attorney General I was told by my boss' that I could not contact another prosecuting authority without permission from the top brass, the same guys that were in denial that gangs existed in Danville. And, yes, they refused to give me permission to work with the A.G.
I tried to get the feds to take the case but my boss' worked against me in this endeavor. They minimized the seriousness of the threats and tried to discredit our intel. Of course the feds lend more credence to those wearing the bling. So our case stalled and no one was ever brought to justice under our nation or state's justice system.
Ironically the general for the Danville branch of the Masjid Al Ka'bah turned up dead in Chicago. Others named as accomplices in the deadly plot scattered and violence targeting suspected informants ensued.
The Danville case illustrates why street gangs can accurately be termed urban terrorists. But if the Danville case is not convincing enough one need look only as far back as the 1980's. It was then that the founder of the Masjid Al Ka'bah, an American citizen, conspired with Moammar Gadhafi to commit terrorists acts in the United States. That founder was indicted and convicted on federal charges related to this conspiracy and he was sentenced to 80 years.
For the skeptics and naïve who believe that America is safe from the atrocities being committed in far away places I'm here to tell you that we're not. Terrorists are within our borders by the multitudes and are committing violent acts every day. Ignoring the problem will only embolden the terrorists. It is time to get real, acknowledge that the problem exists, then provide the resources needed to disrupt and destroy these evil organizations.
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