Brandon Mayfield case: Like Chaplain Yee, only quicker

Nowhere near Madrid

It was an arrest that sent shockwaves through the Oregon Muslim community, and fed fears of homegrown Muslim terrorists in the media. One week ago, Brandon Mayfield was arrested upon suspicion of participating in the Madrid train bombings of March 11th – his “perfectly formed” fingerprint was alleged to have been found on an unexploded bomb – even though he had never visited Spain and had an expired passport. Friends and family rallied around the man they called “too gentle” to commit terrorism, but the usual warnings about the dangers that lurk among American Muslims were issued. “If he is found to have had a link with the Madrid conspiracy,” noted commentator Stephen Schwartz, “nobody anywhere should be surprised.” Last night, however, Mayfield was unexpectedly freed with no comment just as Madrid investigators linked the fingerprint to a Algerian-born suspect closer to home. And like Chaplain James Yee before him, Mayfield’s release comes with little of the media hype that surrounded his arrest, leaving many Americans with the lingering suspicions their initial detentions caused. AvNell Mayfield, Brandon’s mother, worries that some people will not forget seeing her son’s name in connection to the bombings. “That will be a hard image for him to live down,” she said. “I want to thank my friends and family for helping me through what I will call a harrowing ordeal,” said Mayfield as he walked out of the federal courthouse in Portland with his wife and children. He isn’t out of the woods yet, however – federal officials have been vague about whether or not he still faces charges, despite releasing him. “Ethnicity doesn’t matter,” said Samer Horani, a board member of the Islamic Center of Portland. “If you are Muslim you are suspect.”

Shahed Amanullah is editor-in-chief of altmuslim.com.