Motion Targets Fullerton Police

A relative of a La Habra man who allegedly used his bail agency to run a criminal enterprise has accused police of illegally seizing hundreds of thousands of dollars even though he has not been charged by authorities.

Hisham Rashid’s lawyers filed a motion in Orange County Superior Court to force Fullerton police to return the money -- which he said included his children’s lunch money -- and property seized by officers during a search of his home and business in September.

Rashid said officers had no reason to search his home or check cashing business when they arrested Adnan “Dan” Yousef and his family, who operated American Liberty Bail Bonds.

Yousef, 55, and his sons -- Tarek, 20; Ameer, 19; and Monther, 18 -- have each been charged with several felony counts, including embezzlement, forgery and grand theft. Prosecutors also allege that the family kidnapped clients of other bail agencies to get business.

Adnan Yousef’s wife, Rayka, 58, is charged in a separate federal case for allegedly failing to report $52,000 in cash that she was taking out of the country. She was detained at Los Angeles International Airport in May 2003.

They have all been released on bail.

But in a motion filed Tuesday by attorney E. Thomas Dunn, Rashid said his business is separate from his cousin’s business and authorities have not shown any connection between him and the alleged criminal activity.

Rashid’s home and business, Rashid Exchange and Gift Shop, were searched Sept. 15 when a law enforcement task force served search warrants at various residences and businesses allegedly tied to Yousef.

They seized $750,000 in cash from Rashid’s office, according to the court documents. In addition to the money, police also took personal property and 19 handguns, rifles and shotguns.

At the time of the arrests, police said they seized $700,000 from the Yousefs’ home. But Fullerton Police spokesman Steve Matson said the money came from Rashid’s home.

“Virtually every document and dollar he possessed was seized, including the lunch money in the pockets of his children at home,” the motion states. All of the money seized by police “can be traced to legitimate sources,” Rashid said.

Matson acknowledged that investigators seized “a significant amount of money” from one of Rashid’s children, but “it was several thousand dollars, more than enough to pay for an extravagant lunch in any country.”

It will be up to a court to decide if Rashid should get any of his property back, Matson said.

“This case is far from over, and the investigation is continuing,” Matson said. “The motion filed by the attorney is a court issue. But it doesn’t surprise me that someone is saying he wants all his documents back.”

Rashid said he has been forced to shut down his business as a result of the police search.