Synagogue hostage-taker had been kicked out of Texas mosque days earlier: report
KATE FELDMAN
Days before he held four people hostage inside a Texas synagogue, Malik Faisal Akram caused trouble at another house of worship nearby.
Akram, a 44-year-old British national, reportedly tried to stay the night at an Irving mosque after arriving in Texas from Kennedy Airport, but was kicked out.
“He got a little agitated saying ‘you’re not helping out a fellow brother in the faith’ and all that stuff,” Khalid Hamideh, the spokesman for the Islamic Center of Irving, told CBS DFW. “When he did get agitated he was shown the door and left.”
Hamideh said Akram was carrying a “man purse” with him.
Malik Faisal Akram at a Dallas homeless shelter.
Malik Faisal Akram at a Dallas homeless shelter.
“God knows if he had the gun with him already and thank God that he didn’t shoot anybody or do anything bad at our place,” he told the station. “I’m shocked that he did not do something like this at our mosque because they said he was really agitated the first day.”
Attempts to reach the mosque by the Daily News Wednesday went unanswered.
It’s unclear when Akram visited the mosque or how long he had been in the area at that point. He spent one night in an Irving hotel and time at the Our Calling Homeless Center in Dallas.
Investigators are trying to track down the person caught on surveillance footage dropping Akram off at the homeless center.
On Jan. 15, Akram knocked on the door of Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville and Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker made him tea. Then, Akram held four people, including Cytron-Walker, at gunpoint inside the synagogue for almost 11 hours.
“During the day, I remained calm — I know, those who know me won’t believe it — I never raised my voice or made a quick move. Everything was deliberate,” Jeffrey Cohen, one of the congregants held hostage, wrote on Facebook.
“When he let us call our families, I called my wife, daughter, and son. I also posted here on Facebook. Many of you saw that post, I’m sure. To be perfectly honest, at that point, I figured we had few options and little chance of survival. With my feet, I slowly moved a few chairs in front of me. Anything to slow or divert a bullet or shrapnel.”
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. (Brandon Wade/)
Around 5 p.m., one hostage was released unharmed, but the other three remained inside.
On a live stream, Akram could be heard ranting and calling for the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist and suspected Al Qaeda associate serving 86 years in a Fort Worth prison for shooting at U.S. military officers while in custody in Afghanistan.
Siddiqui’s legal counsel told the Daily News Sunday that Akram has “no connection with the family whatsoever” and “he has also no connection to the Free Aafia movement inside the US.”
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. A man held hostages for more than 10 hours Saturday inside the temple. The hostages were able to escape and the hostage-taker was killed. FBI Special Agent in Charge Matt DeSarno said a team would investigate "the shooting incident."
Law enforcement process the scene in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Police stand in front of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Colleyville police Chief Michael Miller addresses reporters in a nearby parking lot after the conclusion of a SWAT operation at Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. All four people taken hostage inside the synagogue during a morning service were safe Saturday night after an hours-long standoff, authorities said.
Colleyville police Chief Michael Miller, center in blue jacket, shakes hands with fellow law enforcement officers after addressing reporters after the conclusion of a SWAT operation at Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Law enforcement officials gather at a local school near the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Law enforcement officials block Pleasant Run Rd. near Congregation Beth Israel synagogue where a man took hostages during services on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Shortly after 5 p.m., local time, authorities escort a hostage out of the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. Police said the man was not hurt and would be reunited with his family.
Law enforcement officials gather at Colleyville Elementary School near the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. Authorities said a man took hostages Saturday during services at the synagogue where the suspect could be heard ranting in a livestream and demanding the release of a Pakistani neuroscientist who was convicted of trying to kill U.S. Army officers in Afghanistan.
A law enforcement official stands patrol on the main road leading to Congregation Beth Israel synagogue where a man had held hostages for hours on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas.
Law enforcement teams stage near Congregation Beth Israel while conducting SWAT operations in Colleyville, Texas on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 15, 2022.
Law enforcement teams stage near Congregation Beth Israel while conducting SWAT operations on Pleasant Run Rd. on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. Authorities said a man took hostages Saturday during services at the Texas synagogue.
Emergency responders gather at Colleyville Elementary School near Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022, in Colleyville, Texas. Authorities said a man took hostages Saturday during services at the Texas synagogue where the suspect could be heard ranting in a livestream and demanding the release of a Pakistani neuroscientist who was convicted of trying to kill U.S. Army officers in Afghanistan.
A Texas state trooper blocks traffic on a road leading to a Colleyville, Texas synagogue where a man apparently took hostages on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022.
Hours later, Cytron-Walker collected the other two hostages, told them to make their way to an exit and threw a chair at Akram. Together, the three fled to their safety.
Akram was dead when FBI agents breached the synagogue around 9 p.m.
The FBI is investigating the hostage-taking as terrorism and said Akram acted alone, although British police said Sunday that two teenagers in Manchester had been arrested.
