Ex-Congressman Admits Lobbying for Charity Suspected of Terrorism Link

A former Michigan congressman admitted in federal court Wednesday to lobbying for a now-defunct Muslim charity with suspected terrorism ties, reports the Detroit Free Press.

Mark Deli Siljander, a Republican House member from 1981 to 1987 who also served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. He faces up to 15 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

According to plea agreements, the Columbia, Mo., Islamic American Relief Agency paid Mr. Siljander $75,000 in 2004 to lobby for its removal from a Senate list of charities suspected of financing terrorism. Mr. Siljander failed to register with the federal government as a foreign agent and falsely claimed the payments were charitable donations, prosecutors said.

The charity was shuttered in October 2004 after the Treasury Department designated it a terrorist organization, saying the group’s international office in Sudan had aided Al Qaeda and the Taliban.