Feds seize offices, properties tied to Mosque which funded Iran

The organization, the Alavi Foundation, owns the land on which the mosques sit, as well as a majority interest in an office tower at 650 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, which has also been slated for seizure by the government.

The authorities accused the Alavi Foundation of spending millions of dollars to obtain and develop the properties, in violation of federal laws that ban trade with Iran.

In addition to the Queens property, which is at 55-11 Queens Boulevard and houses the Imam Ali Mosque, the government sought forfeiture of the foundation’s ownership in seven other properties, several of which house mosques. Another of the properties is a 36-story granite-and-glass tower at 52nd Street known as the Piaget Building.

The prosecutors did not specify how much money they were seeking to be forfeited, but they said that the foundation had tried for years to hide its relationship with the government of Iran. The prosecutors described meetings between the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations and the foundation’s president. The two men met periodically, in a closed room, at the center in Queens, the complaint said.

The government, in a complaint filed in Federal District Court, made no allegations against the mosques or other tenants of the properties owned by the foundation.

In a statement issued late Thursday, the office of the United States attorney, Preet Bharara, said that they remained free to use the properties.

“There are no allegations of any wrongdoing on the part of any of these tenants or occupants,” said Yusill Scribner, a spokeswoman. “No action has been taken against any tenants or occupants of those properties.”