Men charged over drivers's licence scam

Four men from Washington state were charged by a federal grand jury on charges of falsely obtaining Pennsylvania commercial driver’s licences.

The men were among 21 of Middle Eastern descent who were arrested last week as part of an investigation of a Pittsburgh licensing office where an examiner has told authorities he helped people fraudulently obtain licences.

The four men and 14 of the others arrested had permits to transport hazardous chemicals.

The arrests came amid concerns about possible terrorist attacks involving chemical or biological weapons. No link has been found between the licence scam and the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Haider Al-Tamimi, 28, Hussain Sudani, 33, Mustafa Al-Aboody, 29, and Ali Al-Gazawi, 29, are accused of unlawfully procuring a federal identification document.

The men are Iraqi natives. Sudani and Al-Aboody are naturalised US citizens, and Alazawi and Al-Tamimi are legal residents.

Sudani was ordered to be held without bail by a judge in Seattle who said he posed a flight risk. The others charged yesterday were released on their own recognisance.

Their lawyers said the men would plead innocent. Sudani’s lawyer, Allen Bentley, said the men were to be sent to Pennsylvania within 10 days.

State transportation officials have cancelled 111 commercial and non-commercial licences they traced to the alleged scam.

The other men arrested could be charged this week or at a preliminary hearing scheduled for Friday.