February 22, 2010
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News: Credit Card Thieves Connected to Hamas Murder
Eleven murderers and credit card thieves are sought in the killing of a Hamas leader in Dubai. On January 20, 2010, Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, a Palestinian militant group commander was found dead in a Dubai hotel room. The Dubai police are seeking 10 men and one woman who allegedly used five stolen credit cards to fund their murder mission. The cards are said to have been issued in the United States by a U.S. based credit card company. The suspects used the stolen cards to fund travel expenses including airline tickets.
Dubai authorities believe Israel's Intelligence is responsible for the murder; however, Israeli officials have not confirmed their involvement. Surveillance video showed the suspects using the stolen credit cards at the airport, hotels, and a mall all within a 24 hour period. The 11 suspects are identified as 6 British citizens, 3 Irish citizens, a German, and a Frenchman. The murderers and credit card thieves attempted to disguise themselves by wearing wigs and fake beards. The suspects also paraded around impersonating hotel employees and tourists. Some were also witnessed following around the murder victim. The videos also indicated that there were five other individuals involved in the murder.
Authorities have been able to use leads in connection to the five stolen credit cards to provide additional information. There is hope that the stolen cards will lead the authorities to the murderers. It is also suspected that the passports used in the murder operation may have been stolen. The release of the names from the passports created outrage throughout Europe as the U.K., Ireland, Germany, and France all claimed the identities of their citizens were stolen and the named individuals were innocent victims of identity theft. Several of the individuals listed on the passports came forward; the passport photos had no resemblance to the authentic individuals. Israeli ambassadors from the U.K., Ireland and France are all looking into the situation. The British Foreign Minister, David Miliband, said the U.K. has asked Israel to cooperate with them in the fraudulent use of passport investigation.