June 12, 2002
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Page B4
Mortgage lïirns Sour
for Portland Investor
9 mm
Hispanic Arrested in ‘Dirty Bomb’ Plot
D onna L einwand
and J ack K elley ,
by
Jose Padilla,
whom U.S.
authorities say
changed his
name to Abdullah
al-Muhajirand
joined Osama bin
Laden's al-Qaida
terror network.
U S A TO D A Y
With the arrest of a
form er Chicago street
gang member in a sus
pected al-Qaeda plot to
explode a radioactive
“d irty b o m b ” in the
United States, authori
ties are seeking others
who might have been
involved, U.S. law en
forcement officials said Monday.
Abdullah A1 Muhajir, 31, who of
ficials say changed his name from
Jose Padilla after adopting a radi
cal brand of Islam while jailed in
Florida, was believed to have been
on a scouting mission for pos
sible targets when he was arrested
last month in Chicago, where he
grew up. A1 Muhajir was stopped
as he tried to re-enter the USA at
O ’ Hare International Airport after
flying there from Zurich. He had
been in Pakistan, where authori
ties working the case have ar
rested two unidentified Pakistanis.
Authorities said that for much
o f the past month A1 M uhajir,
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like several other detainees in
terrorism probes, had been held
in the New York area w hile offi
cials investigated them. Sunday,
he was m oved to the U.S. Navy
jail in Charleston, S.C., authori
ties said.
U.S. officials provided few
details on A1 M uhajir’s alleged
path from C hicago’s gang cul
tu re to a l-Q a e d a , b u t th e ir
sketchy portrayal of him reflects
the increasing threat they say is
posed by the terror netw ork’s
efforts to recruit W esterners.
A Defense Department official
said Abu Zubaydah, a top al-
Qaeda official in U.S. custody, led
U.S. authorities to A1 Muhajir —
possibly to try to sow fear in the
USA by showing that al-Qaeda
had recruited an American. A1
Muhajir met Zubaydah in A f
ghanistan last year and then trav
eled to Pakistan, where he studied
how to assemble a radioactive
bomb at an al-Qaeda safe house in
Lahore, a senior U.S. law enforce
ment official said. Weeks later, A1
Muhajir met with senior al-Qaeda
leaders in Karachi.
The dirty bomb plot was in its
initial stages and did not have a
target, although A1 Muhajir has
“indicated some knowledge of the
Washington, D.C., area,” Deputy
Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz
said Monday. Intelligence sources
said Chicago also might have been
a potential target. A senior U.S.
law enforcement official said part
o f the plot involved attacking
hotels and gas stations with con
ventional explosives.
continued
Hispanic Chamber Hires
New Business Coordinator
The Hispanic M etropolitan Cham ber ap
pointed G ladys Rom ero as the new B usi
ness D evelopm ent C oordinator.
Rom ero will contact and assist H ispanic
businesses in the m etropolitan area. She
will assess their business needs, provide
direct technical business services and co
McMurphy’s
Appliance Center
4011 NEM.L.K.
Portland, OR 97212
(503) 288-3233
ordinate additional services with other busi
ness service providers like the Small B usi
ness D evelopm ent C enters, the Portland
Gladys Romero
D evelopm ent Com m ission, and the Oregon
Econom ic and C om m unity D evelopm ent D epartm ent.
Before m oving to Portland, Rom ero worked for the U.S. Census
Bureau as the Program C oordinator/Partnership Specialist at the
Seattle Regional Office. She developed and im plem ented a minority
outreach program throughout the region. Rom ero also served 4s the
Project D irector of the M inority Business D evelopm ent A gency in
Seattle. As a result o f her w ork with m inority businesses, Rom ero
was recognized as W ashington’s M inority Business A dvocate of
T he P ortland A lumnae
C hapter of D elta S igma
T heta S orority , I nc .
Presents the
Annual Women of Excellence and
Scholarship Awards Luncheon
At the Doubletree Hotel
at The Lloyd Center
1000 NE Multnomah St.
Portland, OR 97232
Tickets: $39
Complimentary Parking
Alberta
Street
Market
503*2 8 1 *6 3 8 8
S.W /.A.P
’ S e n io r s With A P u rp o se*
Presents
Health and Wellness Seminar
June 22, 2002
TLC-TnT
based at
Whitaker Middle School (Lakeside)
5135 N.E. Columbia Blvd.
(503) 916-6320
Fax (503) 916-2753
In conjunction with Portland Schools
and Portland Park Bureau
Coordinated by Faye Palmerton & Roy Pittman
TLC-TnT is a program for student and families to
promote self-estee. The program is designed to offer
everyone a chance to experience joy, fun gratitude,
tenderness, love, accomplishment and victory.
Please Call 503-916-6320 for 2002 TLC-TNT Summer
Camp Registration Form. The camp is free to all.
ACO RN , a national neigh
b o rh o o d a d v o c a c y g ro u p ,
contacted Frunchess to let her
know she was not alone.
A CO RN accuses H ouse
hold Beneficial o f targeting
African Americans with higher
interest rates and has filed a
national class action law suit
th at c o v ers $45 b illio n in
claim s, nationally and $800
m illion in O regon alone.
T he suit accuses H ouse
hold Beneficial o f deliberately
m isleading custom ers about
the term s and conditions o f
loans that exceed the actual
value o f the hom es in ques
tion.
H o u s e h o ld
B e n e f ic ia l
spokesm an M egan H ayden
disputes the claim s.
“It’s alw ays been and al
ways w ill be our policy to
openly disclose the rates o f
our loans,” H ayden said.
For exam ple, she said in the
of Commerce in Oregon, you can go online to www.hmccoregon.com.
Featuring performances
by Local Students & Silent Auction
Saturday, June 15,2002 Noon-3pm
from Metro
Frunchess case, loan do cu
m e n ts w e re s ig n e d by
Frunchess that disclosed the
term s o f the loan.
H a y d e n s a id th e lo a n
a g reem en t also allow ed fo r a
3 day c o o lin g o ff p e rio d in
w hich the m ortgage could be
can celled .
H ay d en said ac c u sa tio n s
o f race d isc rim in a tio n w ere
particularly offensive, claim
ing th e c o m p a n y is c o lo r
b lin d , b asin g its len d in g on
c re d it h isto ry and c o lla te ra l
only.
She said docu m en ts show
the loan w as priced a p p ro
p ria te ly g iv e n F r u n c h e s s ’
c re d it h isto ry and q u a lific a
tion as only a su b -p rim e b o r
rower.
Company officials from Spar-*
tan declined com m ent.
M eanw hile, Frunchess said
she is so saddled by the exor
bitant paym ents. She is a t
tem pting to sell the house for
only $119,000.
the Year.
For more inform ation about the H ispanic M etropolitan C ham ber
9 1 5 ME A lberta Street, Portland, O regon
K eynote S peaker : Rev Renee’ Ward
r~
Maranatha Church
Fellowship Hall
4 2 2 2 NE 13th Ave.
Portland, Or 97211
Dr. T. Allen Bethel, Senior Pastor
Rev. Cynthia Brathwalte, Assistant Pastor
(OliBrrLicr
Classifieds/
INSURANCE
Processing Tech III
Screener/Underwriting
Support
An exciting industry. A fun, fast-
paced, yet business casual
dress environment. And paid
training to get you started. You’ll
definitely be sold on us. Nation
wide Insurance, a Fortune 500
company and a leading U.S. in
surer, has the following oppor
tunity.
In this position you will verify
rating information to assure
proper premium classifications;
authorize notices of cancella
tion to agents, lienholder, poli
cyholders and DMV per estab
lished criteria as well as per
form other duties as assigned.
Qualified candidates must have
a 4-year college degree and
excellent customer service and
PC skills. Knowledge of auto
and property products a plus but
not required.
Nationwide offers competitive
salaries and comprehensive
benefits such as health, den
tal, 401-(K) plan, and conve
nient free parking at our loca
tion in the Lloyd district. For
im m ediate c o n s id e ra tio n ,
p le a se apply o n -lin e at;
Nationwide is committed to hir
ing candidates regardless of
race, color, sex, national origin,
religion, or disability.
Nationwide
Insurance
PLANNERI
Tri-Met, the region’s progres
sive public transit agency, has
an excellent opportunity for a
Planner I in the Capital Projects
& Facilities Division. This posi
tion will provide planning and
project management support
for the District's bus stops and
facilities development program.
Duties include research, field
investigation, documentation
and technical analysis, develop
ing design improvements and
alternate project site plans, and
participation In major planning
studies and projects.
Qualified candidates will have:
• Bachelor's degree in city or
urban planning, engineering,
architecture or related field.
• Master’s degree or one year
of work experience in lieu of
Master’s degree
• Personal computer experience
with word processing.
Excellent benefit package and
salary range of $15.90-$19.87
per hour. The closing date for
applications is June 21,2002.
Application materials and a de
tailed job description may be
obtained from Tri-Met’s Human
R esources office, 1“ floor
lobby, 4012 SE 17th Ave., Port
land, OR 97202. You may fax
your application, cover letter
and resume to 503-962-7440.
Those residing outside the
Portland Metropolitan area or
who are physically disabled may
request application materials
by calling 503-962-7635. Visit
our website at www.tri-met.Qrg
for more detailed information.
Wanted:
Shoeshine
RiverPlace Athletic Club seeks
e xp e rie n c e d p e rso n for
shoeshine business. Profes
sional appearance, demeanor
& excellent customer service
skills a must. Please apply in
person Tues-Saturday 10-5 @
0150 SW Montgomery or call
503.221.1212
TRI-MET
Tri-Met Is an equal
opportunity employer